


e-boy

by intohyunie



Category: Stray Kids
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Background Relationships, Bad Boy Hwang Hyunjin, Bang Chan & Lee Minho | Lee Know are Best Friends, Bang Chan & Seo Changbin are Best Friends, Bang Chan & Yang Jeongin | I.N are Related, Bottom Hwang Hyunjin, Cute Yang Jeongin | I.N, Dom Lee Minho | Lee Know, Gay, Han Jisung | Han & Seo Changbin are Best Friends, Hwang Hyunjin Being an Asshole, JYP - Freeform, Kim Seungmin & Yang Jeongin | I.N are Best Friends, Love, M/M, Mentioned Lee Felix (Stray Kids), Mentioned Yang Jeongin | I.N, Minor Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know, Romance, School, Seo Changbin Being an Asshole, Shy Yang Jeongin | I.N, Top Seo Changbin, changbin, changjin - Hyunbin, eboy, hyunjin, relationships, skz - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-06
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:54:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 39,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22509637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/intohyunie/pseuds/intohyunie
Summary: From middle school to high school Hyunjin has changed, becoming almost unrecognizable in the eyes of his acquaintances, especially in the eyes of Changbin, who will take a while to understand who he is.
Relationships: Bang Chan & Yang Jeongin | I.N, Han Jisung | Han & Lee Minho | Lee Know, Hwang Hyunjin & Seo Changbin, Hwang Hyunjin/Seo Changbin, Lee Felix & Seo Changbin
Comments: 17
Kudos: 105





	1. 0.1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my very first story about changjin, and I think they deserve much more love. They’re so cute, and I really hope you will like this little thing I’m writing.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hyunjin finally arrives to his new school, how will it be? Who will he meet?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here we are with our first chapter of this fan fiction, I hope you will like it!!  
> Sorry for any mistake, English is not my first language and also this is my first time writing in English, so please look forward it
> 
> I'm going to edit the whole work in order to remove a character, you know who im talking about, due to what happened with him. the editing might take a while, or not, it depends on if im busy or not. I might do it in a day, im not sure, just be patient and understanding please, thanks

Hyunjin walked through the central nave of his new school, looking around him. It was very different from his old school, Hyunjin could notice, especially because it was a private school. He was kind of happy to have changed school, the old one was a real hell. He still didn't know how the new was, he just hoped it was better than the other one. He was kind of "famous" in his old school. Every girl and boy had a crush on him, hoping to talk with him, to be his friend or his lover. They literally fought for him, and that made him meet the principal many times. He never knew why, it wasn't his fault after all, he just enjoyed seeing them ridiculing themselves and he loved rejecting them, it was so satisfying for him seeing, at first, hope in their eyes and then sadness and shame. He loved it. No one really was able to steal his heart, but that didn't mean that he didn't have some fun with some of them, he was a teenager after all.  
First of all, he had to go to the office, to get the schedule and number of his new and shiny locker; the problem was finding the office. As he was passing by some lockers, he stopped the first boy he found, to ask him where the office was. The blond boy decided to take him there, it was easier. Once they got there, the taller boy thanked the stranger, he then knocked on the door. After receiving the permission, he entered inside the office, and walked to the counter, behind which there was a small girl with glasses, who was fumbling with the computer.

"You must be the new one," she said without taking her eyes off the computer screen. Hyunjin nodded arranging his backpack on his back.

"Here's your schedule and locker number," she said, passing him two freshly printed sheets of paper. He grabbed them and bowed a couple of times to thank her.

"Your class is on the second floor, during the break come here, there will be someone who will show you our school” she stammered a few words, her cheeks colored a pale red, nervously putting a lock of hair behind her ear, _a classic_ , he thought as a small smirk appeared on his lips. He thanked her again and quickly got out of the little room, heading towards the stairs. As soon as he set foot on the last step, a voice broke the silence of the corridor. He looked around trying to understand where that voice came from, but everything around him was empty. He was just about start walking again, when he heard that voice again.

"Come on Jeonginie, I don't want to fight," he shook his head and walked towards his class. As much as he was curious, It certainly wasn't his business, and he would have gladly avoided passing by that corridor, but he had to, if he wanted to go to his class. Hyunjin took a deep breath and walked with his head down and with the lightest step he could take, all to avoid getting noticed by those two boys, who, he noticed out of the corner of his eye, were leaning against some lockers. The voice he heard a few minutes earlier certainly came from one of them.

"Stop it, Chan," the other one snorted. He shrugged and barely quickened his pace, occasionally raising his head to look at the class' number, engraved on a plate, attached to the door. When he saw the number 20 , he almost sighed in relief. he raised his hand and knocked on the door, waiting for permission to enter. When he got it, he lowered the handle and entered inside the class, closing the door behind him.

"Ah, you've finally arrived" the teacher said (he don't know what subject she was teaching) smiling at him. He smiled back and approached her, then turned to his new classmates. 

"Guys, please welcome your new schoolmate" she said, drawing attention to her. Hyunjin barely smiled at them, as he was too busy looking around. The eyes of everyone, thought, were all on him. The dark-haired boy tried to ignore it, as he was not feeling uncomfortable with it. Not like he wasn't used to it, but every time it felt weird. He took a deep breath and bowed.

"I am Hwang Hyunjin, I am 17 years old, and I hope we can get along well," he said, trying to smile. His eyes moved across the room, observing one by one all his new schoolmates, who also looked at him curiously. As always, he also heard some comments of appreciation.

"You can go sit next to Yongbok," she said, pointing to a bright red-haired boy. Hyunjin nodded and went to sit next to that Yongbok. He dropped his backpack on the ground and sat down at his new desk, then crossed his arms over it. He was hoping and praying with all his heart that the boy would leave him alone and not talk to him, but all his prayers were in vain. He need his safe space, he didn't want to interact with anyone. He wanted to stay alone

"Hi," he whispered as he approached him. Hyunjin took a deep breath, closing his hands in two fists and turned to look at him. He didn't answer the boy, but he showed him a smile, far from being a kind smile, hoping for him to get the message, and then he turned my head forward again. he wasn't going to talk with anyone, much less making friends. It because he didn't feel like it and because he wasn't really the type. He had always liked being alone; of course he had some acquaintances, and he also went out with them, but he never considered them as real close friends. He had always been a guy who always stayed on his own and always minded his own business. He knows that in the eyes of others, he could have appeared arrogant or whatever, but honestly he didn't care that much. I always thought that people talk a lot to give air to the mouth, which is why he never listened to the things they said.

Luckily for the rest of the lesson, and the next two, that guy didn't dare to talk to him, and Hyunjin couldn't have been happier. As soon as the lunch break bell rang, the dark-haired boy got up from his chair and stretched out his arms, a yawn added to the action.

"Excuse me," a small voice came to his ears, making his turn to his left. Beside him he found three girls who stared at him with a strange, disturbing smile. Again, not like he wasn't used to girl staring at him, but he preferred other kind of stares. It was kind of pleasing though, seeing girls being embarrassed around him.

"Any problem?" he asked sitting on his desk, his long legs, covered with black skinny jean crossed one on top of the other. Hyunjin crossed his arms over his chest and waited for one of them to talk. He decided to tease them, so he tilted his head, making his long straight black hair fall on a side, covering half of his face, as a smile appeared on his face. The girl looked at him, gasping at that action. He could notice them trying to say something, but failing. _ah, I love this_ he thought letting out a chuckle. He then bit on his lower lip, nibbling on his lip ring and fixed his hair, moving them back, showing now his forehead

"N-no, absolutely not" one of them decided to talk, stuttering. Hyunjin chuckled at that, almost finding it cute. "We wanted to ask you if you wanted to have lunch with us” a little girl with blonde hair said. She looked at him with hopeful eyes of a positive answer, as well as her little friends, but unfortunately, for them, Hyunjin refused.

"Sorry, girls, maybe next time" he said, getting up from the desk and leaving the room. He didn't even bother to wait a reply form them or to see their reaction, he simply didn't care. He stopped caring about other people long time ago. Hurting their feelings was never a problem for him when he had the occasion. 

"What a pity, he's so cute,"he heard one of them say. A classic. He found funny how people always approached him only because he was "cute" or "hadsome", nobody who ever liked what he had inside, the real Hyunjin. Not that he let them see inside him, but it was always the same story.

Hyunjin shook his head and walked to the schoolyard, looking for an isolated place to sit and not be disturbed. As soon as he found a secluded tree, he went to sit at the foot of it. The dark-haired boy leaned his back against the trunk of the tree and put on his airpods, playing a random song.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this is it for out first part, I really hope you liked it! I know it short, but for an introduction I think its enough, I promise that starting from next chapter, they'll become way longer  
> Please leave lots of kudos and comments


	2. 2.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeongin makes a disconcerting discover. His childhood friend, Hyunjin, was attending his same school. When Hyunjin finds it out, he begs Jeongin to not tell anyone he was there, and Jeongin promises him he won’t.

Hyunjin's head was resting against the trunk of the tree and his fingers drummed against his knee, keeping the rhythm of the song that was deafening his ears. He was absorbed in his thoughts, when suddenly he remembered that he had to go to the secretary’s office, to meet someone who was supposed to show him the school.

"Fuck," he swore, getting up quickly and picking up his things. As he ran towards the entrance he ran into a boy, making him fall to the ground.

"Damn, are you okay?" He asked the boy, who was massaging his arm because of the fall.

"Damn it," he heard him whispering, slowly standing and Hyunjin helped him. Sometimes he was an asshole, but he had a heart and at that moment he felt guilty, that boy was so small compared to him.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly picking up his things and putting them back in his backpack.

"Do you want me to take you to the infirmary?" Hyunjin asked, trying to smile. The boy shook his head and bowed a few times and then ran into the school. _Alright_ , Hyunjin thought as he walked into the school, to the office. He knocked on the door and as soon as he received the permission, he entered. The secretary looked at him and smiled as she went to greet him.

"You finally arrived, I was afraid you got lost," she laughed slightly. Hyunjin looked at her and cracked a smile. He would have preferred to stay under that tree instead of staying there, but apparently he had no other choice.

"He is Han Jisung, he will show you everything; Jisung this is Hwang Hyunjin,” the girl said, pointing at a boy who was sitting a little further away from them, who was staring at him. The latter got up and walked towards him, bowing at the taller boy, and he did the same. _That Jisung is really cute_ , Hyunjin noticed, and the same thought the shorter of him. Actually Jisung was a little intimidated by Hyunjin, his black hair, his deep gaze, that little silver ring to decorate his plump lips and a small scar on his right cheekbone, which made him even more beautiful, if possible. It wasn't so big, it was barely visible and Jisung wondered how he got it.

"Now go guys," the secretary invited the two boys to go out of her small office, opening the door, and that's what they did.

"So, Hyunjin, why did you move to this school?" Jisung spoke when they started walking.

"Problems," the taller boy replied, shrugging, thus diverting the discussion, suggesting that this was an off limits topic. Hyunjin wasn't one of those guys who spread their business around, especially with someone he didn't know.

"I understand, well welcome to hell anyway," the blonde-haired boy laughed, stopping in front of a large door and opening it. Hyunjin just laughed, nodding. Jisung seemed nice, but sympathy was not enough for Hyunjin to let someone enter his private bubble. In the past he had been naive, he had allowed people into his life to whom he had given much, all of himself, but then they hurt him, abandoning him and not talking to him never again. It was partly for this reason that he had shut in himself, partly because of his family, but that was another thing. He honestly did not know what to answer to the boy next to him, certainly that could not be the same hell as his old school, Hyunjin was sure about it.

"This is the library," the blonde-haired boy said, pointing to the room with his hand, and then closing the door after a few seconds, just long enough to take a little look inside. The library was big enough, _a nice place to isolate yourself, I will be there very often_ , Hyunjin thought.

"Seems nice” the taller boy said sarcastically, obviously he had to keep his "bad boy" facade, at least around other people, triggering the laughter of the latter. They walked for fee minutes until they stopped in front of another door.

«This is the canteen. Do you mind if I say hi to my friends? You can come with me if you want" Jisung asked, and Hyunji nodded. He had nothing else to do, and having a look at his new schoolmates was not a bad idea. So they entered the cafeteria and walked to a table in the back of the room. The table was surrounded by four boys who were chatting animatedly about something that triggered their laughter.

"Hey guys," Jisung said, approaching a brown-haired boy.

"So Hyunjin, they are Minho- he smiled stroking the boy's hair- Seungmin and Jeongin," Jisung pointed at the last two boys smiling. Hyunjin made a small bow, smiling slightly, but his smile disappeared when his eyes rested on those two boys. Soon after, the taller boy, noticed Jisung lower a little, allowing Minho to leave him a small kiss on the lips. _Wow_ , Hyunjin thought, scratching the back of his head nervously. He was embarrassed, and too concentrated in his thoughts to notice that someone was staring at him. Feeling observed, the black-haired boy turned around, meeting the gaze of a pink-haired boy, Jeongin. The boy in question opened his eyes wide and grabbed onto the table. Hyunjin's heart started pounding in his chest. It absolutely could not be true. Jeongin opened his mouth to say something, but Hyunjin preceded him.

"I have to go now, see you," he said quickly, looking at Jeongin for the last time, then turning and leaving the canteen. His steps were quick, as if he was running away from something, and he knew exactly from what. What he had seen could not be true, and he inevitably wondered if the _others_ were also in that school. They could have been Jisung's friends, considering that Jeongin was one of them. And then he realized, he had to close any contact with Jisung, he could not risk it, he had to do it, it was for his own good.

He ran his hand nervously through his hair, before realizing that it was shaking. _Goddamnit_. At that moment Hyunjin realized that Jeongin was the boy who had bumped into at the entrance of the school, _how did I not notice it before_ , he thought, _I'm screwed_. He sighed heavily and keeling over some lockers. He had done everything to forget the past, and he was finally succeeding. Never in his life he would have expected to see _them_ again. He did not want to. He was afraid, he was terrified. His heart ached, and he was afraid he was having a panic attack, the first after what had happened two years before. 

In the canteen, the situation was not different. Jeongin did not stop thinking about the taller boy. It was him, he was sure, it had to be him. Quickly he raised from his chair, putting the backpack on his shoulders.  
"I have to go, I have a - some homework to give Choi," the youngest muttered, then exiting the canteen without waiting for any response from his friends. He had to find and talk to him, he had to do it. Seeing him after so many years had been a relief for Jeongin. Since he left, the pink-haired boy had continued to wonder how he was or what he was doing, so much that his friends went crazy, that they forced him to stop talking about Hyunjin, even _him_.

His legs moved frantically, he looked in every classroom, corridor hoping to find him, and when he was about to give up, he saw him kneeled over some lockers, panting.

"H-Hyunjin-hyung," he heard his name being called. He turned to the right to find Jeongin a few steps away from him. The taller boy held his breath and flattened himself against the lockers. Why, why was it happening now? after he had spent two years forgetting, after all those tears, and those sleepless nights to blame himself for what had happened. Why? Hyunjin took a few steps backwards shaking his head.

"Please don't go," the youngest said, stepping closer to the taller one. Hyunjin looked at him with dull eyes, sweaty hands and a still beating heart. Everything was happening too fast.

"Please don't tell anyone, please Jeongin," the black-haired boy said, begging the other. He was desperate, you could tell from his tone of voice. Jeongin didn't want to, he wanted to tell all his friends, but seeing Hyunjin in that state hurt him, he had never seen him like that.

"I promise," the pink-haired boy said, looking down at his shoes. That meant he couldn't talk to the taller one either, and it hurt. But that was Hyunjin's will and he would have respected it. He couldn't afford to lose him again, so he accepted. Better to see him around school and not talk to him, than not have him at all in his life. Hyunjin smiled gratefully. He and Jeongin were very close from the first day they met, they had the same personality, but it differed in some aspects. They had always supported each other, even if they fought. For this reason, when Hyunjin left their group, Jeongin felt very bad, but he was not the only one.

When Jeongin raised his head, Hyunjin was gone, without saying a word. The younger sighed, walking towards his class.  
"Hey Jeonginie, are you all right?" He felt an arm wrap around his shoulders and a very familiar scent invaded his nose. He smiled just looking at the boy next to him.

"Yes, now that you’re here," he replied, standing on tiptoes to leave a kiss on the boy's cheek.

"Listen, I'm sorry for this morning," the latter whispered, dragging Jeongin into a corridor where no one was there at the moment, to the boy's delight.

"It's all right Channie," the youngest replied, wrapping his arms around Chan's waist, who hugged him tightly. He buried his face in the crook of the taller boy’s neck, who laughed as soon as he felt Jeongin's nose against his neck.

"Go to class now." Chan broke that contact, squeezing the hands of the youngest in his, who nodded smiling. They exchanged a small kiss and then Jeongin ran away to his classroom. His mind, however, kept thinking about Hyunjin, and how much he had changed in the last years, he had become unrecognizable, perhaps that was why neither Minho nor Seungmin recognized him in the canteen. He sat at his desk and sighed again, he really wanted to re-establish relationships with the boy he considered as a brother, but he knew that it was difficult for Hyunjin and he didn't want to put pressure on him. Sooner or later the taller boy would be string and return to Jeongin, he was sure of it, it would take him some time, and Jeongin would give it to him.

As for Hyunjin, he wasn't doing well. He was sitting at his desk, but his head was elsewhere; his leg did not stand still and his fingers tapped nervously against the wood of the desk. He couldn't get Jeongin out of his head. He didn't know how to feel, inside him there were a million emotions that ran from one side to the other making his head spin.

"Are you okay?” Yongbok whispered. Hyunjin turned to look at him with an eye on him.

"Mind your business," Hyunjin replied contemptuously, looking him straight in the eyes. Why didn't that Yongbok understand that he had to leave him alone? It was so difficult to understand that he didn't want to deal with him, that he wanted to be alone, in that moment more than ever. After that comment from the dark-haired boy, Yongbok darkened and turned, having no more intention on disturbing Hyunjin. He did not understand why he behaved that way, he had just arrived in that school and had already attracted the attention of half school, both girls and boys. He had to admit, he was a really a good looking guy, too beautiful to be true.

At the end of the lessons, Yongbok was the first to leave the classroom, heading quickly to his locker.  
"Oi Felix" he heard someone calling from not too far away and turned, seeing his friend, Bangchan, accompanied by another black-haired boy, going to meet him. The latter approached Felix and gave a loud kiss on his lips, making him blush.

"So, to me at five? The others are there too” Chan said, putting his hands in his pockets and tilting his head to one side. Felix nodded putting some books in his locker and taking others, and then put them in his backpack.

"Definitely, I need to forget this day," he said, closing his locker a little too violently, creating a high-pitched sound all over the corridor. The boy next to Felix looked at him with a questioning look.

"I'll tell you all later, I gotta go now," he said, putting his backpack on his shoulder and giving the black-haired boy another kiss, then disappearing into the mass of people towards the exit. Throughout the lessons, whenever he tried to exchange a few words with Hyunjin, Hyunjin always answered him aggressively, not understanding what he had done to deserve such treatment. He sighed and shook his head, trying to push those thoughts away.

"What's wrong with him?" Bangchan asked the boy next to him. The latter shook his head sighing. It was obvious that something had happened, but obviously he didn't know what it was.

"I have no idea, but he said he'll tell us about it later," the shorter between the two shrugged. He didn't like seeing his boyfriend in that state, and what he hated most was not knowing how to help him, he felt useless, more than he already felt.

"Anyway, Jeongin is looking for me. See you Changbin” Bangchan said, walking away from his friend to join his boyfriend, without even giving him time to say goodbye. On his way out of the building, a boy bumped into him, and that was exactly the subject of Felix's frustration, Hyunjin.

"Sorry," the tallest one mumbled without looking at who he had bumped into and continuing on his way. But Changbin saw him. _He is beautiful and so tall_ , Changbin thought, not taking his eyes off the black-haired boy. _Who is he?_ He asked himself exiting the school gate and walking home.

Five o'clock came quickly and soon Bangchan's apartment filled up. seven boys, were in the latter's living room discussing about random things. For about five months Bangchan had gone to live alone, considered far more than responsible by his parents. He had found a job with which he would have to pay for the apartment and for himself, of course. For five months, almost every day, that house had been turned upside down by the group of friends. They find themselves there, because it was the only place where they could do whatever they wanted, without adult eyes to control them. Not that they did who knows what, but still it was much less embarrassing to talk about certain subjects.

“Anyway, Felix, am I wrong or you have something to tell us?” Bangchan said, sitting on the couch, making Jeongin curl up beside him. Chan was so in love with the youngest, he would have killed anyone who would hurt him, and the same was for the pink-haired boy. Bangchan had literally saved his life. After those words, everyone stopped talking and the room fell silent. Felix bit his lower lip nervously and Changbin put his hand on his knee, trying to calm him down and he succeeded.

"Have you seen the newbie?" Jisung squeaked, rising from his boyfriend's legs. Felix tensed up to hear about Hyunjin.

"Newbie?” Bangchan asked in confusion. During the lunch break Bangchan was still in the classroom to finish his test, so he hadn't seen Hyunjin around the corridors.

“Yes, Jisung introduced him to us during lunch. He’s- weird” Seungmin said with a shrug. At first glance Seungmin didn't like Hyunjin, he didn't know the real reason, but he didn't like him very much. He didn’t recognised the taller boy, as the others, it was hard for them to. As Jeongin noticed. Hyunjin has changed a lot, and it was almost impossible to tell it was him. 

"He is so annoying," Felix snapped, lifting his hands in the air. Everyone turned to look at him in confusion.

"What do you mean Lix?" Minho asked, who again had Jisung's head on his thighs, and was stroking his hair.

"I tried to talk to him and be friendly, but he literally told me to fuck off and told me to mind my own business," the red-haired boy sighed, falling on Changbin, who wrapped his arm around Felix's thin figure. The image of Hyunjin flashed in Changbin's mind while he was leaving school. _Oh, he's the newbie._

"But he acted normally with me, I made him laugh," Jisung added, playing with a piece of the jeans that Minho was wearing.

"Honey, he probably felt pity for you” Minho joked, making everyone laugh, except Jisung, who looked offended, and Felix.

"Well anyway, Lix, you don't have to talk to him, just ignore him," Chan spoke, who had been silent all the time watching the situation, especially Jeongin, who was behaving in an unusual way.

"It's not nice to talk behind someone’s back," Jeongin murmured, burying his face into Chan's shirt. He really wanted to tell everyone that the newbie was _their_ Hyunjin, but he couldn't, he promised it. Chan held him close, leaving a kiss on his head.

"he’s so incredibly-" Felix began to speak.

"Beautiful" Jisung continued with a chuckle. Everyone turned to look at him badly, especially his boyfriend, who had pulled a lock of hair, making the blonde-haired boy complain.

"Ouch Minho, what the hell," Jisung murmured, rubbing the painful part.

"You deserve it, you little brat," the older one snapped, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Oh, he has a private profile," Bangchan said, who had picked up his phone and had gone on his Instagram to find the mysterious newbie.

"Can we stop it please?" Jeongin whispered looking at his boyfriend, who nodded, putting the phone back in his pocket.

"Lets just stop talking about it, let's go out, yes?" Changbin suggested, getting up from the floor and stretching his limbs. The others nodded and shortly after they found themselves out of the house heading for a small bar nearby, where the group of friends used to meet and spend time.

Not far from them, Hyunjin was lying on his bed, with earphones on and blasting music . He hadn't done anything else once he got home, he hadn't even eaten, hadn't exchanged a word with his parents. He laid on his bed and never got up, making his parents worry. Hyunjin had his eyes closed, and did not notice that his mother had entered his room and sat on the bed. Her hand slightly squeezed Hyunjin's shoulder, and he opened his eyes, surprised to see his mother. He took off his earphones and he looked at her questioningly.

"What's going on?" the boy asked, his voice raspy and low. As soon as Hyunjin set foot in his room, he burst into desperate, almost liberating tears. All the emotions he had held back so far came out, freeing himself with it.

"Are you okay honey?" the woman asked, gently stroking her son's hair. Although Hyunjin's personality had changed from being sweet, kind and naive, to being detached, impulsive and arrogant, his mother always treated him in the same way, with sweetness, as if he still was the six-year-old boy. Hyunjin nodded, adding nothing more.

"Do you want to eat?" she asked, moving her hand away from his son's shoulder, as if it was burning and she had burned. Hyunjin shook his head again, turning around showing his back to his mother.

"Honey, if there is something that-"

"Mom please go away," Hyunjin whispered feeling more tears sting his eyes. The woman sighed and got up from the bed, slowly leaving the room and closing the door behind her. As soon as Hyunjin heard the door close, he gave free rein to the tears. Seeing Jeongin and the others had been a shock, it had reopened a wound that Hyunjin had struggled to close. The black-haired boy curled up on himself, when disjointed sobs started coming out from his lips, making his body tremble. It hurt, so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all I want to say that English is not my first language, so I hope you can forgive me if there’s any mistake.  
> I switched to the third person narrator, in order to express in a better way the emotions of each character, I hope you liked it~


	3. 3.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its Hyunjin’s second day of school, and he finally realise that he can’t avoid forever Jeongin. Hyunjin and him finally got to talk again, and decide to restore their old friendship, but Hyunjin still doesn’t want anyone to know about his secret. Jeongin, promises that he will keep it secret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry if there’s any mistake, but I’m actually correcting the chapter in the bus lol

The next day Hyunjin woke up with a big headache and his throat still burning. He pushed the covers away from his body and sat up, as soon as his feet touched the floor, he pulled them back, feeling a shiver start from the tip of them. He sighed and slowly got out the bed, dragging himself to the bathroom to wash his face. Cold water hit his face making him shiver. Slowly he raised his head and looked in the mirror, a grimace appeared on his face. The eyes were surrounded by fairly visible dark circles, they were glassy, shiny and his lips were red and puffier. It was a rag. He sighed and leaned over to open the shower water. He stripped of his pajamas and went into the shower, sighed in relief when hot water hit his thin body. He didn't know what time it was, and he didn't care that much, he didn't even see if it was morning or not, he didn't even care to be late in class if that was the case. He needed to recover and compose himself. As soon as he finished taking a shower, he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, while with another he rubbed his hair, trying to dry it as much as possible. As he did this he walked into his room, however, crossing his mother in the corridor.

"It's half past six," the woman said, wrapping herself in her dressing gown and looking at her son. Hyunjin only nodded and went to shut himself in his room. He still had about an hour and a half before the start of the lessons but he had no intention of sleeping, so he calmly dressed up. He wore a pair of light jeans, slightly loose and with some tears here and there, then he wore a white and black striped shirt, with long sleeves, and finally, above it, he wore another shirt, with short sleeves, with some band logo. He fastened his black belt, with a chain that went down his right thigh, around his waist and went to the bathroom to fix his hair, actually he moved it with his hands and then let them fall naturally, then he went to hide those dark circles, being careful not to hide too much the small mole that was under his eye. As soon as he finished settling, he left the bathroom and went downstairs into the kitchen.

"Do you need a ride?" his father's voice awakened him from his thoughts. His eyes rested on the figure of the man who was sitting at the kitchen table finishing breakfast.

"I'll take a walk, thanks anyway," hyunjin replied, filling a glass of water and drinking it in one breath, then licking his lips at the end.

"Ah Hyunjin, did you have to do that?" his father scolded him, rolling his eyes.

"What did I do?" the boy asked confused, as he walked towards the entrance, crouching slightly to put on his black vans.

"I saw that thing on your tongue, you know I don't like it," the father replied, even if he couldn't properly see his son. For his part Hyunjin rolled his eyes.

"You'll have to live with it," the black-haired boy replied shrugging. He took his favorite baseball hat and put it on, almost completely covering his eyes.

"Hyunjin language," the father continued and the boy heard him get up from his chair and then some steps coming towards him. For the millionth time since he woke up half an hour earlier, Hyunjin sighed, pulling a black mask out of his backpack pocket and then putting it on.

"Whatever. I'm leaving,” he replied, putting his backpack on his shoulders, opening the front door and then going out, without waiting for an answer from his father.

"That boy will drive me crazy," the father said, sighing. As soon as Hyunjin left home, the man had walked upstairs and gone to the master bedroom, to finish settling down for work. The mother sighed, fastening a bracelet on her right wrist.

"Dear, you know what he's been through, I'm worried about him too, but I don't want to pressure him," the woman replied looking at her husband, who nodded. On the other hand, she was right and could only agree with her.

"I know, but his way of acting and dressing, and those piercings, that's not our son, Hyemin," the father replied, putting on his jacket.

"After what happened, he changed and we can't do anything about it. Besides, he’s growing, he’s almost eighteen, it's normal that he’s changing," the mother replied, walking towards her husband.

The way from Hyunjin's home to school was not too long, but not too short either. It took him about twenty five minutes, but he wasn't tired. He took some fresh air, and also with the music deafening his ears, time passed more quickly. As soon as he found himself in front of the building he saw that there were already some boys waiting, at least he was not the only one. He went to sit on a nearby wall, dropping his backpack at his feet. He felt mentally exhausted that morning, even more because he didn't know how he would react if Jeongin tried to talk to him

He sighed rubbing his hands against his thighs, wrapped in his jeans. He was suddenly nervous, and could not explain why. His head was low and he only lifted it when he heard someone take off one of the earsphones. He rolled his eyes when he saw a smiling Jeongin in front of him, as always. During the night Jeongin had continued to think and think of Hyunjin, and had come to a conclusion, he, Hyunjin (and possibly the others too) had to restore their friendship. Everyone knew that their bond was strong, indestructible. Each could count on the other, they had never betrayed each other, they had always told each other everything, _let's always tell each other the truth, even if it will hurts us_ , Bangchan had said and from that moment they had always done it, everyone except Hyunjin. He had a secret, and he was so afraid of the consequences that he decided not to tell anyone, even if in the eyes of others it was quite obvious.

“J-Jeongin" it came out more like a question. He was quite surprised to see the boy in front of him when the day before had explicitly told him that he wanted to be left alone. 

"Can we talk please?" the younger boy asked. Hyunjin hesitated a few seconds before nodding. He jumped off the wall, grabbed his backpack, and followed Jeongin to the back of the school. Honestly Hyunjin didn't understand what the pink-haired boy wanted from him, but he was a little curious, even if he didn't want to admit it to himself. 

“Why are you here so early?" the younger asked, leaning against the dirty and cracked wall of the building. In fact, it wasn't like Hyunjin to arrive on time or even early to class. When they were in middle school, he was always the last to arrive, and always the one who got scolded from all the teachers. But he did not do it on purpose, unfortunately he was and heavy sleeper and he did not wake up even after the six alarms that he set at different times every day, with five minutes of difference. Because of this, he always had to run to settle down and arrive not too late for the first lesson. Hyunjin shrugged, leaning against the wall too, a few inches away from the other. 

“Anyway, I know you probably won't like what I'm about to say but ... what do you think of restoring our old friendship?" Asked the pink-haired boy, turning to look to Hyunjin, who was surprised by that request. He had always thought that after that incident Jeongin hated him and that he never wanted to see him again, or at least that was what his parents had told him. 

“I've missed you in these years," the youngest continued, sliding against the wall, sitting on the ground. The taller felt his heart skip a beat and lowered his head looking at the younger one. Then he closed his eyes and leaned his head against the wall. He too had missed him, as he had missed the others, but over time he had learned to live with it. He had learned to live with the feeling that a part of himself was missing, a very important part of himself, one that he had always guarded with jealousy, one that he had protected with his nails and teeth, one that had brought so much joy in his life , one who had taught him many things. Hyunjin knew what it was. 

"I missed you too," the black-haired boy whispered, also sitting down next to Jeongin. Their elbows touched, as did their knees, but that closeness didn't seem to bother the two boys. In fact, they were used to being so close. Hyunjin was fighting against his own emotions and head. The first told him to accept, to embrace Jeongin and to go back to being like many years before, the other, however, was telling him to run away, to go home and hide in his room and never go out of there again. 

“Okay" eventually his heart won. He had missed him so much. A broad smile appeared on the younger boy's lips, showing his braces. In less than two seconds, he threw himself on Hyunjin, hugging him tightly. The arms were wrapped around the older boy’s neck, who smiled at the reaction. Slowly he wrapped his arms around Jeongin's body, holding him tight against his chest. 

"I'm sorry," the older one whispered, hiding his head into the crock of Jeongin's neck. They both knew what Hyunjin was referring to. The pink-haired boy shook his head, breaking that little contact. Jeongin’s hands landed on the taller boy’s cheeks, and looked him straight in the eye. 

"I know, it's all over now," Jeongin smiled, but that moment was interrupted by the ringtone on his phone. 

“It's Chan," he said briefly before answering. The boy stood up and walked a few meters away from Hyunjin, who stopped to look at him. He couldn't believe he had accepted. He was so unsure of his choice, he was sure he didn't want to deal with them anymore, he had suffered too much and he was so afraid to try that feeling again. But unfortunately he had never been able to say no to Jeongin, even about very important things. He could not resist those eyes of his and those lips curled in a sweet pout. 

“I have to go, Chan is waiting for me," the youngest said, approaching the black-haired boy, who nodded. Hyunjin stood up, wiping his jeans with the palm of his hand, when a thought flashed through his head. 

"Jeongin, promise me you won't tell anyone," the taller said, hiding his hands in his jeans pockets. Jeongin looked at him with furrowed eyebrows. 

"But ... hyung-" he frowned. 

“Jeongin, promise me," Hyunjin's hands landed on the younger boy's shoulders, and he squeezed them. 

"I can't do it, it hurts Innie, too much, I can't do it," the taller admitted, shaking his head. Jeongin sighed and nodded, although he didn't like the idea. 

“Okay, I promise. But sooner or later it will have to happen, your secret will be discovered sooner or later hyung” and having said this Jeongin left, letting Hyunjin think about his words. He was right. He was damn right and Hyunjin knew it. But he still hoped he could keep his secret and hide his identity from others. The black-haired boy sighed, straightening his hair and walked to the school entrance. 

“Come on Minnie, you're so slow," Jisung's shrill voice made Hyunjin freeze on the spot. He quickly lowered his head; even if he had the mask to hide half of his face, he still could not risk being seen by the two. Above all by Seungmin. Jeongin would have been the only exception, it would never have happened again. 

“Shut up Han, or I swear this is the time I will beat your ass," Seungmin snorted, rolling his eyes. _God, he’s so loud_ , Seungmin thought, catching up to the blond boy, who had a big smile on his face, like every day. 

“I still wonder how Minho-hyung can put it up with you," he added as soon as he was next to Jisung. The boy wrapped his arm around the brown-haired boy’s shoulders and smiled even more if possible. At that moment they passed Hyunjin's side, but neither of them noticed him. 

“He can be adorable when he wants." Minho broke into the conversation. Jisung squeaked and walked away from his friend, to throw himself into his boyfriend's arms and they exchanged a sweet kiss under the curious looks of the other students, and under the disgusted look of Seungmin. 

“Ew disgusting, I'm leaving," he added, finally entering the building. The two lovers laughed and, with their hands intertwined, they too entered.

When Felix entered the classroom, after saying goodbye to Changbin, Hyunjin was already sitting at his desk. He had removed his mask and his hat, and was laying on his desk. Felix took a deep breath and walked to his desk, to sit, obviously not speaking to the other in the least, which Hyunjin was very happy with. During the break, Hyunjin had decided to stay in the classroom. His arms were crossed on the desk and his head resting on them, his gaze out of the window, thoughtful. A thousand thoughts went through his head, making him sigh in frustration. Maybe accepting what Jeongin told him was a mistake, perhaps it would have hurt him, but at that moment he didn't care. The younger was an important part of his life, he was like a younger brother for Hyunjin, always, and for Jeongin, the older one had been like an older brother, always ready to protect him, to confront him, to support him.

Jeongin was in the canteen, sitting at the usual table with his friends. Changbin and Felix laughed at who knows what, Minho and Jisung were, Seungmin's words, _disgustingly clinging_ , while Chan was busy busy working on his precious laptop. He still did not understand how all seven entered that small table.

“I'd be eating, stop making out so close to me, it's disgusting," Seungmin complained, gently pushing Minho and Jisung who were sitting next to him. Jeongin ignored them, too busy looking at the canteen door or outside the window, hoping to see Hyunjin's tall, thin figure, but nothing. 

"I have to go to the bathroom," the youngest said getting up from his seat, and without waiting for an answer from the others he left the canteen. He didn't know where to look for his friend, but somewhere he had to start. So, first, he decided to check into Hyunjin's class. The classroom was empty, silent, and when Jeongin entered his footsteps echoed across the room, but Hyunjin did not move. He stands firm in his position, imagining the mysterious person is a classmate of his. 

"Hyung," Jeongin's forefinger tapped Hyunjin on the shoulder a few times before the latter turned to the younger one. 

"I guess you've changed your phone number, but mine is always the same, if you want to call," the pink haired boy smiled, sitting down at Felix's desk. 

“I will," the taller replied, nodding. Jeongin handed him his phone, suggesting that he should save his. So Hyunjin grabbed it and quickly saved his number, then returned the phone to its owner. 

"I'm going now, see you." Jeongin squeezed Hyunjin's shoulder before he left. 

Jeongin returned to the canteen with a smile on his face. When he approached the table, he noticed that almost everyone had left, except for Chanand Minho who were talking. 

"What are you talking about?" the pink-haired boy asked sitting down next to his boyfriend. Chan turned to him smiling. Jeongin loved his smile. 

“Adult stuff," Chan teased him, causing a small pout on Jeongin's lips, making the other two boys laugh. 

“It's not funny," the youngest crossed his arms over his chest and pursed his lips, accentuating his pout. 

“You're so cute Innie," Minho chuckled, making Chan laugh and the little one blush. 

At the end of the lessons Hyunjin decided to not go back home, also because his parents were at work and would not return before 7 pm. He needed fresh air, and surely staying closed in his room would not have helped. In five minutes he found himself in the park next to school. He wandered around the small park, looking for a place to sit. After five minutes of searching, he found the perfect place, and before it could be occupied, difficult to do since there was nobody around, he went to sit under the tree. He didn't want to think about anything, he just wanted to enjoy that moment of peace. So he pushed all his thoughts into a remote corner of his brain, and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.  
A few minutes had passed since Hyunjin was sitting and at some point someone, who probably wasn't looking where he was putting his feet, tripped over Hyunjin's legs, which were lying on the grass. 

“Damn- fuck" The black-haired boy at that point opened his eyes finding a boy lying half on his legs and half on the ground, facing the grass. 

“A-Are you okay?" Hyunjin asked worriedly, as he approached the boy to help him and sit up. As soon as the boy raised his head, Hyunjin's eyes widened, and for a moment his grip around the arms of the mysterious boy loosened, almost making him fall again. 

“Yes, I’m fine, sorry I wasn't looking where I was walking" the boy in front of Hyunjin, who had lost the use of the word, laughed embarrassed. 

“Did I hurt you?" The boy spoke again, but Hyunjin didn't answer, he was too shocked to do anything. The words didn't want to come out of his mouth. In an instant of lucidity, he shook his head and smiled.  
“Don't worry," Hyunjin replied pulling his legs back against his chest and hugged them, as if he wanted to protect himself from something. 

From _Changbin_ , who was sitting in front of him with a slightly red forehead, but a broad smile to decorate his face, _he hasn't changed_ , Hyunjin thought, scrutinizing and admiring the other's face. Panicked, and afraid that Changbin would recognize him, Hyunjin got up and ran away. 

"Fuck," he swore as he left the park. He should have worn the mask and the hat, it would have been better. Or maybe not. It was better that way. 

"What a strange boy," muttered Changbin to himself still sitting. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii, hope you really enjoyed the this chapter. Soon I will explain everything, don’t worry, you will know what happened between Hyunjin and the others.  
> Finally Changbin and Hyunjin met, but the older doesn’t seems to recognise the younger, or he did recognise him? Who knows


	4. 4.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone now knows about hyunjin’s secret. Bangchan wants to punch him, changbin is shocked

A week passed after the sudden meeting between Hyunjin and Changbin, but as the first one did not stop thinking about it, the other did not give much importance. Hyunjin hadn't mentioned Jeongin in the least, because he was sure the other would tell him to go talk to Changbin, and he didn't want to. The older between the two considered it only as a brief meeting with the newbie, nothing more. Hyunjin never stopped thinking about how Changbin had remained the same. His V-shaped face, that hair always black and always with the same cut, most of the time corrugated eyebrows, same way of dressing, always black, ripped jeans and sweatshirts, the same. The only thing that had changed had been the addition of that piercing to his eyebrow. He was fine, the tallest could not stop thinking about it, it was so Changbin. Somehow he expected it. Sometimes, in the past, Hyunjin thought of a hypothetical future with his friends. He imagined them ten years later, all in the same college, together. He also imagined their appearance, height, hair and their way of dressing. He imagined Jeongin without his braces, Bangchan with even blonder hair, almost platinum and Changbin exactly as he had seen it a week before.

"Hyung are you there?" Jeongin waved his hand in front of Hyunjin's face. The latter shook his head awakening from his thoughts.

"Yes, sorry," replied the taller, tapping the pen in his hand on his book. They were at Hyunjin's home, a safe place, according to Jeongin, to study. When they were younger, and attending middle school, he and Jeongin used to meet at one or the other's home to study. Despite attending different years, studying together was still pleasant. Being in the company of one and the other, even without speaking, had become like a kind of routine for the two boys.

"Changbin-hyung told us he had a strange encounter with the newbie. Why didn’t you tell me?" the youngest spoke, without taking his eyes off Hyunjin, who choked on his own saliva, starting to cough.

"It wasn't important," Hyunjin said, looking intently at his book. It was actually very important for Hyunjin. As soon as his eyes settled on his Changbin face his heart skipped a beat, or maybe two. Those feelings were still there, never gone. He had only hidden them, suppressed them, it was better that way.

"It is important to you Jinnie, I know-"

"Enough Jeongin, Changbin is an off limits topic," the taller interrupted him, violently closing his physics book, he was not understanding anything anyway. Jeongin sighed and nodded, closing his history book too.

Jeongin nervously nibbled his lower lip. He understood that Hyunjin did not know that Changbin was dating Felix, much less Jeongin had told him that the red-haired boy was a friend of his. Hyunjin had told him about this extremely hateful red-haired classmate of his who didn't leave him alone for a second. From that moment Jeongin had tried to avoid the Felix speech, and Hyunjin could not have been happier.

Jeongin was nervous. That week has been hell. He was trying hard to keep his promise to Hyunjin, but it was so difficult to lie to Chan. He had never done it, had never lied to him, not even about the stupidest thing. And lying about such a big thing was making him suffer. But he really loved Hyunjin so much, and he couldn't risk losing him again.

\------------

Another week passed. One in which Hyunjin became quite popular in school. All the girls, and even a few boys, drooled behind him, but getting negative feedback from the tall boy. However, he had to keep his bad boy facade, and he allowed himself some kisses, or something more, with random people. Jeongin didn't like his behavior at all, because he had always seen Hyunjin as the good middle school boy, who always followed the rules and always behaved well.  
That was not his Hyunjin. That light in his deep brown eyes was so different. A grin was always present on his face. No, that wasn't his Hyunjin. But every time he tried to talk to the taller boy than his behavior didn’t suite him, the taller liquidated him saying that somehow he had to let off steam.

"Are you okay Innie?" Minho asked, placing a hand on the younger boy's arm. Jeongin turned to face him and shook his head. He couldn't take it anymore.

"H-hyung can we talk?" the younger whispered, so as to be only heard by the older. They were in the canteen, and as usual the table was noisy, especially thanks to Jisung and Changbin who never stopped fighting over anything. Minho nodded and got up from his seat and Jeongin imitated him, thus attracting the attention of Chan, who had had his hand on the thigh of the pink-haired boy all the time.

"What’s wrong? Everything good?" Chan asked, looking worriedly at his boyfriend. Jeongin nodded slightly and bent over to leave a kiss on his boyfriend's cheek. He left a few seconds later and went out of the canteen with Minho, straight to the bathroom, away from prying eyes and ears. Jeongin was nervous, you could tell by how he bit his lip and how he looked around, almost frightened. Before he started talking, he made sure that no one besides them was in the bathroom.

"Do you want to tell to me what's going on Jeongin? You have been strange for weeks? " it came out as a question 

"The new boy ..." the younger boy began to speak, fiddling with his fingers.

"Yes? What did he do?” the older asked, tilting his head to one side.

"He's - he's Hyunjin," the pink-haired boy said quickly, looking at the boy in front of him, who had a confused expression.

"Yes, I know Jeongin, what do you mean-"

"No hyung, he is Hwang Hyunjin," Jeongin repeated, emphasizing the tall boy's name. He had finally said it, he had taken that huge weight off his chest, and he felt lighter. His fists tightened the fabric of his sweatshirt waiting for a reaction from Minho, which was not long in coming.

"Wait, what? I don't believe it. ”The older boy shook his head, running a hand through his hair. Now Minho was the upset one. He could hardly believe it, but after that revelation everything started to make sense. It couldn't just be a coincidence that the nenie and their best friend had the same name.

«I didn't believe it either, but it's true. But hyung, please don't tell- "

"Don't tell what to whom?" Chan's voice interrupted Jeongin, who, as soon as he saw his boyfriend enter the bathroom, opened his eyes wide. His heart began to beat fast, frightened by the idea that Chan had heard him. He had already broken his promise to Hyunjin, revealing his secret to Minho. He couldn't risk Chan finding out, especially because Chan didn't know how to keep secrets.

"Nothing," said the pink-haired boy quickly, trying to smile.

"Spit it out Jeongin" a quality, if you can call it that, the youngest did not have, was knowing how to lie. One way or another, Chan always found out when he was lying. In fact, he couldn't understand how Chan hadn't found out yet. Not that he had behaved suspiciously or what, since he and Hyunjin decided to become friends again, he had tried to stay as close to him as possible, taking advantage of the fact that Chan was busy studying and preparing for university exams to go out with him. So whenever his boyfriend told him that he had too much to study, Jeongin would go to Hyunjin's house to spend as much time with him as possible.

Minho stared at Jeongin, as if he was trying to mentally communicate with him. For a few seconds, his eyes and that of the youngest crossed, just long enough to make Jeongin understand that he had to tell Chan the truth. Then Jeongin sighed and lowered his head.

"The newbie ... he's _our_ Hyunjin," whispered the pink-haired boy. For a few seconds he thought Chan hadn't heard him, but soon after he heard the bathroom door slam and he could swear he heard Chan murmuring a _"I’ll kill him"_ or something. Jeongin's breath broke and he ran after his boyfriend, followed by Minho. Chan was furious and hurt. His feet moved alone and his head moved frantically. He had to find him. He had to. He couldn't believe it, it all seemed so surreal.

"Hwang Hyunjin," the platinum blonde boy shouted as soon as his eyes landed on Hyunjin's tall, thin figure. The latter, on hearing his name, turned, and then found himself crushed against the lockers. As soon as Chan's hands tightened on the collar of his black shirt, the taller dropped the books he was holding and closed his eyes, as if that could protect him. He didn't understand what was going on, he only knew that everything was happening very quickly. Bangchan easily pulled Hyunjin's body away from the lockers, and with much more ease he slammed him back against them, making the black-haired boy whine. Luckily there was no one in the corridors, as the lunch break had been over for a few minutes.

"Why didn't you tell us, huh? Why?" Bangchan shouted tightening his grip. Hyunjin quickly opened his eyes and looked at the boy in front of him. How had he known? Why? But above all how. But then the answer to those questions showed up in his head in large letters.

"Chan! Chan for god's sake, stop it. ”Jeongin finally joined them. He was out of breath, but that wasn’t enough to stop him. He wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's waist and tried to push him away, but he was stronger than him.

"I pretend explanations," Bangchan shouted again, not bothering to be heard by anyone. He was hurt. Chan had always taken care of everyone, being the older followed by Minho, he had always made sure that everyone in the group was fine, happy. When Hyunjin left their group it is needless to say that he cried. It was an angry and disappointed cry. He was disappointed in himself. He had not been able to keep their group together, like a family.

"Chan stop it, you're hurting him," Minho said, putting a hand on the blond boy's shoulder. Chan pushed Minho's hand away and, if possible, tightened his grip even more, looking straight into Hyunjin's eyes, who had an empty, emotionless look.

"Let's go somewhere else," Hyunjin murmured, now giving up on taking Chan away from his body. Hyunjin was tall, yes, but Bangchan had much more strength in his arms, going to the gym three times a week. Bangchan nodded at that request and pulled Hyunjin's body away from the lockers. He stood behind him, so as to block him if he noticed any sign of escape from the tall boy. So the four boys walked out through the back door of the school and walked to the football field, then sat in the stands. Hyunjin walked alone, ahead, while the other three behind him, all in silence. Bangchan was tense, Jeongin had his head down, with his eyes on his shoes, while Minho was worried.

"Explain," Bangchan said once they were seated. Hyunjin sighed, rubbing his hands on his thighs. He was nervous. His heart was pounding and his hands were sweating cold. There were a thousand thoughts in his mind, all of them confused, he didn't understand.

"I'm- I'm sorry," the taller boy whispered, lowering his head. He could not put two words together, he did not know how to explain himself above all. What was he supposed to say? How would the older boys react? There were too many thoughts that his head started to hurt.

"You’re sorry?" Bangchan laughed ironically. He repeated what he said once again, but this time his hand slammed into one of the seats next to him. That gesture startled Jeongin, who slid closer to Minho. The latter wrapped his arm around the younger boy's body and smiled slightly, as if he wanted to reassure him, but it didn't work. Few times Chan got angry, but it wasn't that bad. That was the first time she had seen him so angry, and he didn't like it. The veins in the neck throbbed and the eyes were dull and wide open, the heavy breathing. No, that was a Bangchan that Jeongin never wanted to see again.

"How long have you known?" he spoke again, this time to Jeongin. His tone was more peaceful, but he still was angry. Jeongin looked at him for few seconds, debating if he should tell him the truth or lie again, but he soon realised that lying wasn't the right decision. So he took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment.

"About two weeks," the boy whispered. He was frightened by the reaction his boyfriend would have.

"I can't believe it," once again, that sarcastic laugh came from Bangchan's mouth. Without adding anything else, the latter got up and left, leaving the other three confused. A few seconds later Jeongin burst into tears, his hand was on his face and sobbing.

Hyunjin felt extremely guilty. Seeing Jeongin cry broke his heart, especially if it was his fault. He felt like a monster for making such a sweet and fragile person like Jeongin cry.

"I'm going to Chan, Hyunjin take care of him," Minho said, then got up and went to Bangchan who had returned to the school. The black-haired boy approached Jeongin and slowly wrapped his arm around him, bringing him closer to his body. Jeongin was still sobbing, his body was shaking and Hyunjin could not help but feel guilty.

"I'm sorry Jeonginie," Hyunjin whispered, lowering his head. He never thought that things would go that way, he would never allow it, especially for the fact that he knew how much Jeongin loved Bangchan. At that moment he realized that asking for a smaller one to keep such a big secret had been too much. He also understood that he had made a mistake in letting him get closer, he would have to close relations immediately, it hadn't been a good idea at all. At that moment he no longer cared that others would find out, it no longer made sense.

In fact Bangchan, as soon as he arrived home after class, sent a message to his friends telling them to join him at his home. He couldn't believe Hyunjin had returned, and even more so, he couldn't believe he had kept it hidden for more than two weeks and that Jeongin, his Jeongin, had covered him. For as long as he waited for the boys, Chan walked back and forth through the living room, nervously running a hand through his hair. He couldn't stop thinking about Jeongin, and the fact that he lied to him. But maybe he understood it a little. He knew that Hyunjin and Jeongin were very close, so he could understand how he felt to have met him again. But still, the fact was that he had lied to him, after promising not to lie, never.

After twenty minutes, Chan's apartment was filled with six boys, mostly confused. Jeongin, until the last minute, was not sure whether to go there or not, but in the end he gave in, and took it as an opportunity to talk with Bangchan, as the older one ignored his calls and messages. Jeongin arrived last, and when Bangchan went to open the door, the youngest felt himself dying. He and Chan had never fought, well there had been some fights, but nothing serious, they made peace after five minutes. The platinum-haired boy sighed and wrapped his arms around the younger boy's body, pushing him against his body, hugging him tightly. Jeongin sighed in relief, and returned the hug, he felt much better.

"I'm sorry," whispered the older boy, leaving a small kiss on the younger boy's head. Jeongin whispered that it was all right and that he loved him so much. Bangchan broke that contact, his hands pressed against Jeongin's waist. He leaned down and kissed him softly. When he pulled back, he took the hand of the youngest, intertwining their fingers, and then led him to the living room, where the others were waiting for them.

"Could you explain the reason for this urgent meeting?" asked Jisung, he was sitting on Minho's legs, who played with the blond-haired boy's hair.

"It was my idea," Jeongin replied instead, receiving a confused look from his boyfriend, but decided to ignore it. He had to do it, well actually it was Hyunjin who had to do it, since it was something that concerned him, but Jeongin decided to take charge of the situation. It was his job. With Hyunjin then they would have solved at another time. The boys nodded, but were still confused.

"There's one thing I've been hiding from you for over two weeks," continued the pink-haired boy. Bangchan squeezed his hand trying to comfort him.

"I'll say it without too many words, Hyunjin, he's _our_ Hwang Hyunjin," said the pink-haired boy quickly. Silence fell in the room for a few minutes, which then broke as Changbin got up and left the apartment, slamming the door behind him. Jisung was about to get up and follow him, but Minho stopped him by shaking his head. They were all speechless, at least those who still did not know it, would never have imagined it. It seemed so surreal, they never expected it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kinda rushed. I’m sorry if it looks horrible but I tried my best. Hope you liked it anyway~  
> I’m sorry if there’s any mistake


	5. 5.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally the story behind the group of friends is told. What will happen next?

When they heard the front door slam, silence descended into the room. Nobody dared to speak and the air was full of tension. Bangchan sighed, throwing back his head. Jeongin laid a hand on his boyfriend‘s, squeezing it.  
"Why did Changbin leave?" Felix asked confused after a few seconds. Everyone turned to him, in fact he was the only one who didn't know the story, probably because Changbin was one of the protagonists of it. But anyway, maybe the time had come to tell him everything too.

"Can someone explain me," the red-haired boy continued, standing up. He was nervous and his foot didn't stop moving.

"All right, Lix, please sit down," Bangchan said, slowly approaching the red-haired boy and putting a hand on his arm. Felix's head tilted down and the boy went to sit on the couch again. He didn't understand, he didn't understand why his boyfriend had reacted that way after hearing the name of what he considered his enemy. There were many confused thoughts in his head, and he still did not understand. It had taken him a long time to understand Changbin. At first the older one had been very bashful, he never showed his feelings, he rarely expressed his emotions explicitly, Felix never understood why. But he started falling in love with him despite Changbin never saw him more than a friend. The older one was kind and caring with Felix, and was always sincere, at least he believed he was. He had never doubted Changbin, had always trusted him, and the older one had never proved himself wrong. There was a part of Changbin that Felix didn't know, wasn't aware of, and had never put pressure on the older one. He would have waited for the right moment, the moment in which Changbin would have been ready to talk to him about it.

Eventually, Changbin also ended up falling in love with Felix, or so he thought. Love for the older one had always been an enigma, he didn't understand it. He was also scared of it, from what he had heard, loving led to pain, and Changbin was sure he had felt that pain. His heart was shattered after what happened, and he promised himself never to experience those emotions again, which he felt for the first time with _him_

"I'll explain everything Lix, but you have to let me talk, okay?" Chan spoke in a low, calm tone of voice, not to make Felix freak out even more. The older one didn't need a hint of consensus from the others, because he knew they agreed with him in telling the truth to Felix. The red nodded and that was the signal Chan was waiting for before he started explaining.

_It was a Friday afternoon on a spring day, a thirteen-year-old and a twelve-year-old Jeongin, were in the park enjoying that sunny day. The two boys were sitting on a bench and laughing at something stupid that one of them had said. Their shoulders were shaking and their cheeks hurt from too much laughter, they were really having fun. Both were very happy to have had permission from their parents to take a short walk to the park, which was not far from their houses. Hyunjin and Jeongin had known each other for a long time, since they were respectively six and five years old, and from that day they never separated. They spent all their days together, it would be said that they separated only to sleep, but it was not so. four days out of seven they slept together on alternate weeks._

_A couple of years later, Changbin and Seungmin arrived in their lives, with whom they bonded immediately (Hyunjin was eight years old, like Seungmin, and Jeongin seven, while Changbin was nine years old). Changbin was the most rebellious of the four, but it was okay, he was funny and carefree, but he took good care of the other three boys, since they were younger than him. Hyunjin liked that side of him, very much. Shortly after Changbin and Hyunjin became inseparable, where one went the other followed, if one didn't like one thing, then the other one didn't like it either. Their friends made fun of them for their strange behavior, but the two did not care, they were fine with it. Anyway, this closeness between Hyunjin and Changbin did not break that special bond between the first one and Jeongin. They continued to love each other. Jeongin was happy that Hyunjin had found someone like Changbin, even though they were very young._

_"I think I like boys," Hyunjin confessed to Jeongin one day. They were eleven and ten years old. Hyunjin had always been sincere with Jeongin. He had always told him everything, so revealing that secret had been simple for him.  
"I love you anyway," replied the youngest, showing a big smile, his teeth embraced by braces. Hyunjin also smiled and hugged Jeongin.  
"I hope you like Changbin-hyung," the younger one murmured, making the older one blush and chuckle. He never answered Jeongin, but the answer was obvious._

_On the day of Changbin's tenth birthday, Chan, who had Changbin's same age, arrived. They met in a bizarre way. The birthday boy had decided to celebrate the big day in a game room, with slides and pools full of colored balls. Changbin, Seungmin, Hyunjin and Jeongin were having fun in the pool, throwing colored balls at each other, when at one point one of those balls, thrown by Changbin himself, hit the head of a child. The boy turned in confusion as he scratched the hurting spot._

_"Sorry," Changbin said quickly reaching for that boy. In the meantime, the other three laughed and made fun of the boy for his bad aim.  
"It’s okay," smiled the stranger.  
"Chan are you okay?" the two were interrupted by said boy's mom, who approached them and placed her on the little boy's head, who nodded.  
"Yes mom, don't worry" Chan shook his head, smiling at his mom. After the woman looked at the boy for one last time, she nodded and left, walking towards her husband. Changbin looked at Chan and an idea showed in his head.  
"Do you want to play with us? It's my birthday, so I can apologize for hitting you" Changbin smiled hopeful. Chan smiled widely and nodded, holding Changbin's hand and went to play with the others._

_Their group had expanded a lot, and even more when Minho arrived, the same age as the other two. The seven boys caused troubles everyday, never got bored, spent each day together. When Changbin, Bangchan and Minho attended the first year of high school, Minho introduced Jisung, the same age as Seungmin and Hyunjin, to the group, in fact they got along immediately._

_There were a couple of months to go before school ended, before the summer holidays, it was the last year of middle school for Hyunjin and the second year for Jeongin._

_It was a Sunday afternoon, almost evening, and the two were in the usual park, waiting for the others to go to the cinema together. Hyunjin's head rested on the younger boy's shoulder and chuckled, Jeongin was telling him how Chan had fallen the day before. They were enjoying those quiet minutes before Changbin and Jisung could arrived, who were louder than a hundred people talking together.  
But that moment was interrupted very early by a group of four boys._

_"Oh, how cute," said one of them pointing towards Hyunjin and Jeongin. The two looked confused. Jeongin, with his heart beating fast, got closer to Hyunjin as much as possible, he did not like that situation.  
"Hey Woosik look, they're scared," laughed another. They were probably older than they were.  
"You are done with the show, faggots," said another one disgusted. Oh, so that was the problem, Hyunjin thought. The tallest one stood up, making sure to hide Jeongin behind him. The latter grabbed Hyunjin's sweatshirt and pulled it, trying to make the tallest one turn towards him.  
"Hyung, no please" whispered the youngest shaking his head. He was afraid, he was terrified of those four boys.  
"Leave us alone and go away," Hyunjin replied, ignoring Jeongin. He was fed up with people like them. They were just a mass of ignorant and mentally closed people, who lashed out against them just because they were gay, as if they had killed someone. And anyway, it was not that they had shouted their sexual orientation to the four winds. Hyunjin was really fed up with them._

_"Hey hey, what a nice temper," that Woosik laughed, dangerously approaching Hyunjin. That boy was taller than he and had to raise his head to look at him better. He was more robust than Hyunjin, and he was certainly much stronger. He was getting angry, and at the same time worried about Jeongin, he had to protect him at all costs.  
"Go away, prick," Hyunjin growled through gritted teeth, without breaking eye contact. He had to admit it, he was scared too, but he didn't have to show it, those guys were not expecting anything else. As soon as Hyunjin said that word, the boy reacted and grabbed him by the collar of the sweatshirt.  
"What did you call me?" he screamed a few inches from his face. Hyunjin closed his eyes, but reopened them soon after when he heard Jeongin scream and throw himself over Woosik._

_"Leave him alone," shouted the youngest one again, causing the group's laughter. Woosik motioned to two boys who grabbed the youngest and held him tightly by the arms. Jeongin squirmed, screamed to let Hyunjin go, but none of them seemed to care.  
"No no, please don't hurt him," Hyunjin prayed, shaking his head. He would never have forgiven himself if something had happened to Jeongin. Another nod to the third boy, and he came up to Jeongin and punched him in the stomach making Hyunjin scream and Jeongin whine in pain. Warm tears began to fall from the eyes of the youngest and his head fell forward. Hyunjin started wiggling and kicking. It wasn't really happening._

_"Don't worry, there are some for you too," Woosik laughed, throwing a punch in Hyunjin's stomach, who narrowed his eyes in pain and slumped to the ground, his arms wrapped around his stomach. After a few seconds a kick came on his back, which made him fall permanently on the ground. Woosik straddled him, throwing another punch on the face, on the cheek, followed by an endless series of punches. One of the two who held Jeongin grabbed his hair and raised his head, so that he could look at what Woosik was doing to Hyunjin.  
"Hyunjin" shouted the youngest wiggling, but everything was useless, those two were bigger and stronger than him, and every effort was useless._

_That was too much for Hyunjin, his eyes were heavy and full of tears, but they were on Jeongin, who was still crying and screaming. In his mouth he could feel the metallic taste of blood, his nose and jaw ached, so much so that he thought they were broken, and probably it was so. That Woosik's punches were strong, fast and full of anger. Hyunjin didn't understand why they were lashing it out against them, or maybe he knew it. He no longer had the strength to scream or complain about the pain. He felt his hair being pulled and another punch colliding against his cheek. Woosik stopped immediately after throwing the final punch. Hyunjin thought it was over, but immediately felt two hands tighten around his throat. Hyunjin started to squirm and try to push Woosik's hands away. His fingernails scratched his assailant's skin, but that didn't seem to stop him._

_"Hyunjin! No, no, leave him alone," Jeongin shouted in tears.  
"It’s okay," he mimicked, always facing Jeongin, before finally closing his eyes. As soon as Woosik made sure Hyunjin passed out, he got up and motioned for his companions to leave. The two who held Jeongin left him and fell to the ground. His legs were shaking and although the pain in his stomach was strong, a bruise would probably come out, he got to his feet and ran to Hyunjin. He gently took his head and placed it on his legs, and then burst into tears._

_"Hyung, why?" he whispered shaking his head. He couldn't take his eyes off the older man's face. His beautiful face had been disfiguring that way for an absurd reason, according to the smallest and many others. He felt terribly guilty, even though it wasn't his fault at all, much less Hyunjin. Knowing the taller one, he knew he would blame himself for what happened, no matter how many times Jeongin would tell him that it wasn't his fault.  
"Jeongin, what's going on" Bangchan's voice broke the deafening silence that had fallen after Hyunjin had passed out. Jeongin turned and as soon as he saw the older boy he threw himself into his arms and burst into tears. He kept saying 'I'm sorry', but Bangchan couldn't understand. But as soon as his head rose and his eyes landed on Hyunjin's helpless body, he startled. He moved away from the youngest and ran to Hyunjin in disbelief._

_"What happened Jeongin? Who did this? Did you call an ambulance?" Bangchan spoke quickly, taking his phone from his pocket and calling the ambulance, without waiting for Jeongin to answer his questions. When they answered the call, Chan started talking quickly, explaining to them the situation and what had happened, the person on the other end of the phone assured him that they would arrive as soon as possible.  
Jeongin was unable to answer Bangchan when the call ended, so the older one simply hugged him. Shortly eafter the others arrived and after seeing their friend in that state, started filling with questions Bangchan and the youngest. Jeongin still could not speak, so he put Chan in his place, as far as he knew._

_Changbin instead, as soon as he saw Hyunjin in that state, approached him and knelt beside him.  
"Hyunjinie" he whispered, taking his hand and holding it in his. He couldn't believe his eyes. Hyunjin, his Hyunjin, his sweet Hyunjin had been beaten for who knows what reason. He couldn't believe it. He just lowered himself and moved a few strands of hair from his forehead to leave a soft kiss. He mentally cursed himself. He was supposed to be there with Hyunjin and Jeongin, but due to an expected reason he couldn't be with them. If it wasn’t for his sister, all of that wouldn't have happened. Obviously he couldn't get mad at his sister, but at least he could have refused to help her, since his sister's 'big emergency' was the fact that Changbin broke her laptop's charger._

_Changbin held Hyunjin close to his chest when the ambulance arrived, but he had to move away from him when paramedics laid him on a stretcher.  
"I'll call his parents, Changbin go with him," Chan smiled softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. Changbin nodded and got into the ambulance. All the way to the hospital, he didn't take his eyes off Hyunjin. He was connected to the respirator and the paramedics were making sure his heart beat was regular. But anyway he wasn't paying much attention to what they said, he was too busy looking at Hyunjin, as if he was scared that at any moment he could disappear forever. He would never have forgiven himself. He was frightened by the idea of losing Hyunjin forever. His hand had never left the tallest’s, he held it tight and his eyes closed, continuing to repeat that it would be all right, but he was not very convinced._

_As soon as they arrived at the hospital, Hyunjin's stretcher was pushed into the building, Changbin followed the nurses in silence. They entered a corridor and it was there that Changbin was blocked.  
"I'm sorry, you can't go any further," said a nurse, placing her small hand on Changbin's shoulder. The boy didn't even have the strength to rebel and scream that no, he wasn't going to stay there without doing anything. But there was nothing he could do about it. He sat down with his arms crossed on his chest, resting his head against the wall and closing his eyes. That evening he wanted to confess his feelings to the taller one. It was a long time since he realised he was in love with Hyunjin and recently that he had decided to confess his feelings. To the others Changbin and Hyunjin were a real couple, even though there had never been anything official. They never kissed, just a few kisses on the cheek, forehead and in their hair, but they were always attached to each other._

_After a few minutes the others arrived. Changbin explained the situation to them, even though he himself knew little about it. Jeongin had calmed down, but hadn't left Bangchan for a moment, he felt safe in his arms. The youngest had done nothing but think of the taller, and that scene kept repeating itself in his mind, torturing him. At the umpteenth thought, his eyes filled with tears and Chan held him tightly, caressing his hair. 'It will be okay' the bigger one kept repeating, as if it was a mantra. Jeongin probably didn't believe those words, and honestly Bangchan didn't believe it either._

_Hyunjin's parents also arrived shortly after. His mother had a blank expression, while his father was holding her close to his body. They didn't notice their son's friends until they finished talking to a doctor, but decided not to talk. A couple of hours passed and Hyunjin finally came out of the operating room. Despite not being awake yet, his parents entered his room, closing the door behind them._

_"It's all your fault," the mother shouted at the group of boys, once she left the room. Nobody dared to utter words. The woman was evidently shaken by the incident, her son had been beaten almost to death for no reason, not one with a sense. As soon as they heard the news from Bangchan, the mother nearly passed out.  
"Because of you, my son ... my baby-" the woman burst into tears, leaning against her husband, who held her tight against him. He knew that in moments like that, he just had to remain silent and let his wife let everything out.  
"Go away, Hyunjin doesn't want to see you," she said then, finding a moment of lucidity. Her head lifted and her eyes looked at the boys one by one. There was a strange light in the woman's eyes, and it was understandable. It doesn't matter to her about nothing and no one if was about her son. She didn't care that Changbin was such a good guy with Hyunjin, she didn't care that everyone had been friends for a long time, she only cared about her son.  
"Go away! I don't want to see you with Hyunjin again, never again, you have to disappear from his life" she shouted bursting into tears again. The group of friends got up slowly and one by one they left. All except Changbin. He stood there, in front the parents of the boy who had stolen his heart._

_"I don't agree, but I accept your decision. But I just want you to tell Hyunjin that I love him and that I will always do it," the boy said in a low tone. He didn't say anything else, he didn't even wait for Hyunjin's parents to respond and left._

Bangchan ended his story with a lump in the throat. They never talked about what happened, it wasn't easy. That night they decided to sleep together. What Hyunjin's mother said had hurt them. They could not accept that the woman had told them to disappear from her son's life, much less it was Hyunjin himself who had said something like that. After all those years together, after all those good or bad moments that are, fights, sleepovers, after all that, they could hardly believe it. It couldn't be true.

"That was the last time we saw Hyunjin, or at least we talked to him. There were still two months of school, and he disappeared after those two months," Chan added with a sigh. Jeongin had tears in his eyes. He was happy that he had found Hyunjin again, but they still hadn't talked about it. Jeongin had tried to avoid the topic, and apparently Hyunjin too.

"We haven't heard from him since, we've never talked about him because it’s very painful, and for Changbin it's a very sensitive subject," Minho added, who had a shocked expression on his face. Of all that sad story, the thing that stuck with him most was that Changbin had been in love with Hyunjin for a long time, and at that point he didn't know if he still was, he probably was.

"Lix don't worry, Changbin hyung really likes you," Jisung said, who was always snuggling up on his boyfriend. Minho glared at him and shook his head. Jisung looked at him confused. "What did I do?" confused boy with blond hair whispered. In fact what he said wasn't all that wrong, but now that the tables had changed how would things have turned out?

"Yeah, too bad I was hoping he really loved me" Felix whispered lowering his head. He didn't like that situation. Many and ifs began to form in his head, and as many horrific scenarios followed, causing some tears to form in the red-haired boy's eyes. Felix was trying to convince himself that it was nothing special, and that Changbin was upset by that news, but that didn't mean he was leaving him for Hyunjin, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we are. The big secret is now revealed!  
> Firstly, I want to sincerely apologise if there’s any grammar mistakes.  
> Second of all, I really hope you enjoyed and liked it.  
> I was so excited to write this chapter, and I honestly gotta day that I nearly started to cry. At the beginning I wanted to write something else, but then I changed my mind after watching IT part 2, I took the idea from there. I really hope you liked it.  
> Also, the story is coming to an end, maybe I’ll write two or three more chapters, I’m still not sure.


	6. 6.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> what hyunjin and changbin have always dreamed about finally happened. But what kind of consequences it will have?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> finally, some changjin is happening, after six chapters lmao. Anyway, don’t worry I’m the next chapters I’ll make sure to add more changjin moments.

Hyunjin's chest rose and fell quickly, small drops of sweat fell from his temples to his chin, his forehead was wet with sweat and his hair was attached to it. The black shirt he was wearing was sodden, attached to his body. His legs were shaking, but that wouldn't have stopped him. Dancing was his whole life, he loved to dance, it was the only way to not think and at that moment he needed it. He felt his head heavy and thoughts buzzing in it. Maybe loud music wouldn't help, but it didn't seem to bother him, on the contrary. The higher it was, the better it was; it had always been this way.  
When he danced he lost track of time, it could be an hour, two or three, and so on, he never gets tired, so much so that his parents had to drag him away by force.

He had never taken dance lessons, he had always done everything alone, learning the choreography of his favourite songs. He had a good memory of memorizing the moves, so it was easy enough for him to memorize all those choreographies and he remembered them all perfectly. Sometimes he choreographed some of them and he was always excited when at school, during school’s shows or projects, they asked him to do one or to take care of the ballets for them.

The place where he trained was a small room owned by an elderly lady who had taken Hyunjin to heart. Ms Choi had been a dance teacher for many years, and one day she saw Hyunjin spying on her lesson from one of the large windows. She was surprised when she saw him dance in his home garden and praised him. For this reason, when the lady closed the school, she allowed him to go whenever he wanted. He gave him a copy of the keys and Hyunjin carefully kept them. He was so happy to have his own place to dance and not hear his parents complain about the loud music.

Sometimes his friends joined him and they danced all together until exhaustion, but precisely, after what happened they stopped going, obviously only Hyunjin continued to go.

Changbin loved Hyunjin's way of dancing. He loved how he closed his eyes before he started moving, how his arms and legs moved, how his body moved perfectly following the music. He went crazy when the taller man pulled him close to him and invited the older to dance with him. Having Hyunjin so close to him was something indescribable.

Hyunjin was so caught up in the moves that he didn't notice that someone was watching him and that someone was Changbin. His arms were crossed over his chest, and he was leaning against the door. His eyes did not leave Hyunjin for a second, they followed him every movement as if he was afraid of losing even a small detail. It had always been this way. The black-haired boy noticed Changbin, only when the latter turned off the music, the console was by the door.

The taller winced at the sudden silence and when he lifted his head, he winced once again when he noticed Changbin.

"I was sure I would have found you here," said the older looking at the taller. Hyunjin was surprised. After that time in the park, Hyunjin had always tried to avoid him and in fact, there had been a few times he had seen him around the school. That meeting in the park had been so fast, it hadn't let him metabolize it and now, having him so close had made him realize how much he had missed him. Hyunjin could not speak, had a lump in his throat, and it was as if he had forgotten how to speak.

"What is it? Has the cat got your tongue?" Changbin continued chuckling and taking a few steps closer to the taller. At that moment Hyunjin's brain seemed to be reacting, and he backed away. It didn't seem to matter to Changbin, and he approached him again until Hyunjin's back touched the mirror, and at that moment he realized he was screwed. The older one trapped Hyunjin between his body and the mirror, his arms on the sides of the head of the taller, his face very close to that of the other, their breaths mixing, their hearts beating in the same way, quickly.

Having Changbin so close made him realize how physically exhausted he was. At that moment his legs could no longer handle his weight, and he collapsed into the arms of the older one, who immediately wrapped his arms around Hyunjin's too thin body. Slowly he made him sit on the floor, still in his arms.  
"What are you doing here?" finally the tallest spoke, with a faint voice. His head was resting on Changbin's shoulder.

"I wanted to see you," the older man admitted, holding Hyunjin close to himself. Hyunjin smiled slightly and raised his head, to look better at Changbin. Their faces were much closer than before, but they didn't care, they were used to being so close.

"You've lost too much weight," added Changbin after a few moments of silence. Hyunjin blushed slightly and looked down. It was true. When they were younger he used to eat for two or three people, and now his appetite had almost completely disappeared.

"You still need me to take care of yourself," the older one chuckled. Then Hyunjin raised his head with a frown, pretending to be offended.

"But I'm the one who always takes care of you," the taller laughed, gently pushing Changbin. The latter pretended that the little push had been painful and laid on the floor, while he grabbed Hyunjin by the wrist and took him down with him, making the taller laugh.

"You're a bad actor Hyung," laughed the black-haired boy looking at Changbin. After that sentence, silence fell in the room, and the two boys continued to look at each other in the eye, without saying a word. They had missed each other. Both had missed those days spent together having fun; holding hands, laughing together, exchanging quick glances and chuckles, jokes and making fun of others, together. He had missed being together, one in the company of the other, even without doing anything in particular.

Changbin's hand lifted and moved a few strands of hair from Hyunjin's forehead, making him close his eyes to that light touch.  
"How is it possible that you become more and more beautiful every day" that phrase came out as an imperceptible whisper, but Hyunjin managed to hear it, and in fact he blushed, biting his lower lip. Changbin's thumb slid across Hyunjin's cheekbone, gently stroking it.

"You know Hyunjinnie, there is one thing I wanted to tell you that night," said the older of the two still, running his thumb over the pronounced jaw of the taller. Hyunjin had forgotten how to breathe. He could not move, it was as if he had lost all motor skills, his still was laying on Changbin, his piercing trapped between his lips, on which he nervously nibbled on it. He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he did not notice that Changbin's thumb was tracing the outline of his lips and that, unconsciously, he had opened them just making the bigger one chuckle. That laughter made him wake up from his thoughts. _Why is he laughing?_ The taller thought panicking.

He was thinking about the worst, he thought Changbin would get up and leave, not before telling Hyunjin to disappear forever from his life. He didn't want that. Now that he had found him, he didn't want to let Changbin go, he was his. Maybe a word a little strong, a little selfish, but it was like that and everyone knew it, it was evident to everyone. There had never been anything official, but those two belonged to each other, they were made for each other, but both were too blind to notice, they were too afraid to ruin their friendship. _What if he doesn't feel the same?_ This was the question that both kept repeating themselves, a question that never had an answer, because neither of them found the courage to confess their feelings to the other, until that evening, when Changbin finally decided to gather his courage and confess his feelings in Hyunjin, _but it didn’t go as he expected._

Hyunjin lost it when Changbin's lips landed on his. His eyes widened and for a second he thought of pulling away, but instead, he closed them and returned that sweet little kiss. A few seconds passed before Changbin pulled away from Hyunjin, his eyes still closed.

"Damn" whispered the youngest, making Changbin chuckle. He cared about nothing at that moment, only about the person in his arms. He didn't feel guilty about Felix, maybe it wasn't so nice to say it, but it was true. For years he had dreamed of that kiss with Hyunjin, and finally, it had happened, far exceeding his expectations. The whole zoo had gone wild in his stomach as soon as their lips made contact, his hands trembled and his heart burst with happiness. He doesn’t know if he has ever felt that way, with anyone. Only Hyunjin was able to make him feel that way, so happy and complete.

Hyunjin was still incredulous. Thousands of butterflies were fluttering around his stomach, giving him a beautiful feeling all over his body. As soon as their lips touched, he felt that famous sparke. He was so happy. For years he had hidden his feelings for the older one and was so happy that he didn't have to do it anymore. This was the right time, he had to do it, for Changbin and above all for himself.

Changbin rubbed their noses together, causing Hyunjin to giggle, then pressed his lips against those of the younger once again. Changbin's hands were still shaking, so he placed them on the younger boy's hips, firmly gripping onto them, which made Hyunjin whine, but despite that, he didn't stop kissing Changbin. Hyunjin’s arms were on the sides of Changbin's head, which helped him hold himself up. Slowly the kiss became more intense, eager. Their lips weren't going to part, not even to catch some air. It wasn’t like one of those close-mouthed kisses like you do when you’re in eighth grade and you’ve never held hands before with a girl. It was a full-on, open-mouthed, almost sexual kiss. And He loved it. He loved the way the other male's body melted into his. The way their lips fit like two puzzle pieces. The way he relented as he played with his hair and held the male tighter and tighter. The sloppy kisses with intimate lip-smacking as he nibbles on his bottom lip, asking for entrance as his tongue irked to explore his mouth. A small moan came out from Hyunjin’s mouth, as soon as Changbin slid his hands under the shirt of the younger. Changbin's hands pressed against Hyunjin's soft and delicate skin, and that made him crazy. That gesture brought him back to reality and barely moved away from the older one, straddling him, thus breaking their kiss.For the duration of the kiss Changbin had felt something cold and metallic collide against his tongue, a piercing? he thought, but still it hadn't been a bad feeling.

"I didn't know you had a tongue piercing too, how many things are you hiding from me, Hwang Hyunjin?" Changbin bit his lower lip looking at the taller one, who was still sitting on his lap. Hyunjin laughed and shook his head and stuck his tongue out, showing the piercing.

"do you like it?" asked the youngest, still with his tongue out, and talking in a weird way, which made Changbin laugh a little, tilting his head to one side. At that moment he noticed that the boy in front of him also had one, on his eyebrow. Hyunjin thought it made Changbin even more attractive and sexy, even more. Changbin had always reflected the requirements Hyunjin was looking for in a boy, so he knew he was the right one. Contrary to what everyone could think, for Hyunjin the height difference between the two was not a problem, he certainly loved teasing Changbin to make jokes about his height, mostly because he adored the reactions of the older one.

"I love it," murmured Changbin immersed in his thoughts. They all led in one direction: Hyunjin who did little chaste things with that tongue, him and Changbin as subjects of them, in all the fantasies that had manifested in his mind. He shook his head and tried to throw those thoughts away, they didn't do him any good.

"I have to go now jinnie, but please don't ignore me, never again, please," Changbin whispered, afraid to ruin that wonderful moment that had arisen between the two. Having Hyunjin sitting on him like that, he looked like a child. tilted head and frowning expression, lips puckered in a soft pout, it wasn't doing anything good to him.

"I won't, I will start talking to the others too ," replied the taller, standing up and helping Changbin. He offered him his hand, and the older one grabbed it, but he wasn't going to let it go even when he was standing next to the taller one.

"Stop growing, brat," the older one joked, making hyunjin blush slightly. It was the first time in many years that hyunjin blushed, but it was still Changbin who made him blush when they were younger.

"hyung wait" hyunjin took his hand before the big one could leave. Changbin turned with a smile, and shook the little boy's hand.

"yes, jinnie?"

Once again that nickname. Hyunjin's stomach went into turmoil once again, he would never be tired of being called that way, especially if it came from Changbin. In fact, from then on, he wouldn't let anyone call him that way, it was something that only Changbin could do.

"was this what you wanted to tell me?" he asked, referring to the kiss, the taller felt his cheeks burning once again. Changbin laughed and pulled hyunjin towards him, kissing his cheek, completely ignoring the fact that he had tiptoed to do it

"See you tomorrow jinnie," smiled Changbin, before letting go of the taller one’s hand and walking away.

Hyunjin stayed still in the middle of the room, speechless. What did it mean? He was still incredulous, he could not believe that, finally, his biggest dream had come true. He was even more surprised that after so many years, he still had those feelings for the older one. This meant how strong and intense his love for changbin was. He had never stopped thinking about it, imagining it there, next to him, in the darkest moments.

Changbin had a big smile on his lips as he walked to his home. His stomach is still upside down, the feeling of Hyunjin's soft and plump lips on his. For years he had dreamed of that moment, and finally it had happened. He had always imagined their first kiss, but that was far beyond his expectations. The scene that had shown itself in his head over and over again represented hyunjin and changbin, during an afternoon to spend some time together, as they always did; laughing and joking. Then silent falls between them and the two look each other in the eyes, for endless seconds, then changbin slowly approaches hyunjin and finally their lips meet..

This is how Changbin had imagined it, but after many years, and a slightly more different location, that kiss had happened. The ringtone of his phone awakened him from his thoughts. As soon as he read the name on the screen he opened his eyes wide, waiting a few seconds before answering.

"Babe, where are you? I thought we would have met like an hour ago" Felix's tone of voice was normal, not angry at all, but it was normal, it was rare for Felix to get angry, it happened rarely and for important situations.

"shit, sorry lix I had something to do with Chan and Jisung, but I'm coming, give me ten minutes," the older one spoke quickly, going towards his boyfriend's house.

In fact ten minutes later he found himself knocking on Felix's door, who, as soon as he opened it, jumped into his boy's arms, making Changbin stumble, who wrapped his arms around Felix's body. immediately the head of the younger buried into Changbinm's neck making him chuckle, felix's hair had tickled him. But Felix broke that contact almost immediately, looking at Changbin with a pout. 

"what?" the latter asked looking at his confused boyfriend. panic took over and he began to wonder if it was possible that he had found out, but it wasn't. Hyunjin and Felix barely knew each other and as far as he knew, Felix knew nothing of their past. Everyone in the group was reluctant to mention Hyunjin and talk about him, so they never did. But changbin didn't know that felix knew all about him and Hyunjin, and he couldn't help but feel jealous and even scared. He was afraid of losing Changbin, he loved him so much, and even at the thought of losing him, he felt tears sting his eyes and threatened to go down his cheeks.

"You have a strange smell on you, I never felt it," Felix murmured, looking down, finding his shoes particularly interesting. Changbin held his breath for a few seconds.

"yes er, jisung was particularly clingy today, I think he was missing Minho," chuckled the older one, nervously scratching the back of his neck. He bit his lower lip, feeling guilt begin to show up. Felix had always been sweet and kind to Changbin, despite some problems and foughts. Changbin had been too, he had always taken care of the youngest, he had always made sure that he was okay, that he was happy, and now it was he who made him unhappy. He felt like a monster.

"Lixie, look at me please" Changbin approached the red-haired boy and took his hand, squeezing it. Then Felix raised his head

"I love you, mm? now let's go get something to drink, okay?" Changbin tilted his head and with the other hand, tickled Felix, who chuckled slightly nodding.

"I love you too hyung" he smiled, and then left a small kiss on the lips of the older one.  
It was difficult, at that moment, for Changbin to say that 'I love you'. until a few days before he would have had no doubts, it would not have sounded so strange, he would not have hesitated to say it, but at that moment a thousand doubts and questions began to fill his head, questions to which he had no answer, or maybe yes, but not he wanted to admit it to himself. He had to admit it, since Hyunjin had returned to be part of his life, even if he had been for a very short time, he had shocked him. Ever since he found out that 'the newbie' was _his_ Hyunjin he hadn't stopped thinking about him, not that he hadn't done it in previous years. This happened a little over a week before and Hyunjin had never left his mind ever since. He had noticed that the taller was avoiding him at school, so he decided to resort to strong manners. He wasn't really sure he would find him in that place, he had lied before, and he was surprised when he saw him there. He didn't know what would happen the next day, but what he knew was that he had to talk to someone about what had happened, it was too big and he needed advice. So as he and Felix walked to the nearest starbucks, he sent a message in the group he, minho, chan and woojin had, asking for a small but urgent meeting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always i hope you liked itv please don’t judge, insult or whatever, english is not my first language and I really tried my best, if you don’t like don’t read, easy! I apologise if there’s any mistake, please forgive me.  
> please, I’d you liked it, leave lots of kudos


	7. 7.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Changbin e Hyunjin can't stop thinking about each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was supposed to update this part yesterday, but right when I was about to publish I have accidentally deleted it, so I had to write everything again. It came out a bit different from the first one tho.  
> I know this chapter is nothing special, let's consider it as an introduction of what is going to happen next. I promise that in the next one some spicy and interesting things will happen. be mentally prepared.

About a couple of hours later, Felix and Changbin were already on their way back home. They were walking towards the first one's house. Changbin had told him he was busy and had to go home. When Felix asked him what he had to do, Changbin replied that his parents needed him; he didn't want to tell him the truth because he knew that Felix would have asked to go with him and it wasn't a good idea. Felix decided to believe him, even if he seemed a little doubtful. After saying goodbye with a small and quick kiss on the lips, Changbin left Felix at the door and walked to Bangchan's apartment where the 'meeting' would take place. He had to admit that for most of the time spent with Felix he hadn't stopped thinking about Hyunjin. It was almost impossible to do that.  
Hyunjin had been his crush from the first moment their eyes met, ten years before. Even if for a few years he had tried to contain and hide those feelings, as soon as he had seen him again, it was as if that chest in which he had locked his feelings, had reopened violently without his permission.

Without realizing it, he had already arrived at Chan's house. He hurried to knock on the door. It was the owner of the house who opened it. Changbin did not even say hello and rushed straight into the house, towards the living room. There was already Minho who was sitting on the couch. Changbin went to sit between them and it was at that moment that he sighed.

"Changbin, are you okay?" Minho asked, tilting his head to one side. Changbin found himself sighing again and shook his head.

"Why did you ask to see us?" he asked again, crossing his legs on the couch. Chan was sitting on the other side of the couch, his phone in his hands and his fingers moving quickly on the screen, he was texting with Jeongin. Occasionally he chuckled, thus drawing the attention of his friends.

"Er yes, why?" he said, locking the phone screen in embarrassment. It looked like he had been caught by his parents in the middle of something fishy. 

"We kissed," Changbin said quickly, hiding his face with his hands. There was no need to specify who he kissed. The boys had an idea of why Changbin wanted to talk with them, and after what he said, they were more than sure.

"Wa our Binnie wastes no time huh?" Minho teased him with a chuckle, but the other three weren't laughing at all, on the contrary, Chan glanced at him. What Minho was trying to do was raise Changbin's morale. He and Jisung were always the ones who made jokes or started arguing about anything, to try to make their friends feel better. It was not because they did not know when to be serious. They did it because they hated seeing their best friends down, for whatever reason.

"But that was what you always wanted, right?" Minho then asked.

"Yes, but he is with Felix" Chan pointed out, and that made him feel even worse. Kissing Hyunjin was what he always wanted, he couldn't do that to Felix, he didn't deserve it.  
"You have no idea how I felt" whispered Changbin resting his head on the back of the couch.

"I was scared my heart was going to explode with joy. I have never felt this way before. Hyunjin has always made me feel like this" continued Changbin, this time lowering his head and looking at his legs.

"You still love him so much, don't you?" Chan asked, smiling slightly. In all the years that Chan knew Changbin, he had never seen him this happy; the taller boy was always able to make him feel better even with only a smile or a hug. When no one in the group could make Changbin feel better, they called Hyunjin. Nobody made him laugh like Hyunjin. Nobody made his heart beat faster as Hyunjin did.

"I think you should understand where your heart is pushing, even though we all know" added Chan standing up from his recliner and sitting on the ground in front of his friends.

"I think you have to tell Lix the truth, he is mature and he will understand the situation" added Minho, receiving approval from Chan.

"We know you don't want to hurt Lix, but we're talking about love Binnie, and you've always loved Hyunjin" Chan continued, and also this time the Minho agreed. Changbin sighed once again and nodded. His friends were correct, he had to tell Felix the truth, as soon as possible.

Not far from Chan's house, Jeongin and Hyunjin were at the latter's house, in his room talking about the same thing. As soon as Hyunjin told the younger one what happened, he had started hopping around the room. He seemed the happiest of the three. Hyunjin just looked at him from the bed and chuckled.

"I still can't believe it" the youngest squeaked jumping on the bed.

"But it's true" the taller answered nodding, making the younger one squeak once again and laid down on the bed. Even Hyunjin found it hard to believe and the more he thought about it, the more surreal it seemed. Hyunjin hugged his legs and placed his head on his knees. At that moment Jeongin's phone rang, indicating the arrival of a message, the hundredth in a few hours.

"Tell Chan-hyung not to bother us, you're mine now" Hyunjin pouted and that made the pink-haired boy chuckle. The two hadn't stopped texting since Jeongin had set his foot in Hyunjin's house, two hours earlier. Hyunjin was happy that Jeongin was with Chan, he never expected it though, considering Jeongin was very shy and doubtful about this kind of thing. He had to be in love with Chan because his eyes brightened every time the older one sent him a message. For a moment Hyunjin envied him, it must have been nice to be with the person of your dreams. Hyunjin awakened from his thoughts, hearing his phone ringing this time. He took it and tilted his head not recognizing the number. He hadn't many contacts because he changed his number and phone, much less nobody contacted him. For a second he wished it was Changbin, but since he knew his number by heart, it couldn't be.

As soon as he arrived in America, Hyunjin decided to change his number and phone, to be not tempted to contact his friends, especially Changbin, which was impossible. Whenever the need to text Changbin showed up inside him, Hyunjin gave the phone to his mother, telling her to keep it until that thought was gone. Once it happened that she kept it for a week because as always, Hyunjin did not stop thinking about Changbin. That's why he had started to keep himself busy. He went to school in the morning, in the afternoon he studied, then on alternative days he took swimming and football lessons, and when he could, he practised dancing. He reached the end of the day exhausted, without strength. That helped him not think about it.

"Who is it?" Jeongin asked innocently and that made Hyunjin even more suspicious.

"Jeongin what did you do?" asked the black-haired boy unlocking the phone screen.

"Go ahead and read" laughed the youngest tilting his head. Hyunjin sighed and read the message, opening his eyes wide after every word he read. It was not possible.

"Changbin-hyung changed numbers when ... well, when you left. Channie asked me to give him your number and I did" added Jeongin since Hyunjin wasn't talking. _He asked me to see him_ , Hyunjin thought as a wide smile appeared on his lips. He was so happy. He quickly replied and then as if he had just realized it, he stood up and screamed.

"Oh, holy shit" he squeaked, making Jeongin laugh. Hyunjin kept repeating it as he walked back and forth to his room. He rushed to the closet and opened it, starting to throw all of his clothes on the floor.

"Go and take a shower first, you stink. You're killing me" the younger teased him, but it was the truth. As soon as Changbin left the practice room, Hyunjin ran back home and called Jeongin, who showed up at his house after five minutes; that's why he didn't have time to take a shower. Hyunjin nodded and ran into the bathroom. Jeongin laughed slightly and shook his head, starting to fix the mess that Hyunjin had just made. He decided to put some clothes on the bed, the ones the taller one should have worn. As soon as he finished folding his last shirt, a thought appeared in his head. He quickly pulled his phone out of his jeans and wrote a message to Felix, asking him how it had gone with Changbin. He was happy for Hyunjin, but Changbin and Felix were still together. He didn't know what to think, which side to be on. Maybe he had to step aside and let things develop naturally, without his interference.

At that moment Hyunjin came back from the bathroom, with only a towel around his waist and his wet hair pulled back.

"I chose some clothes for you, you will wear those" the younger boy informed him, trying to ignore the fact that Hyunjin was half-naked. It wasn't the first time, but that was completely different. Hyunjin had changed, his traits were more mature and defined. There was no denying the fact that Hyunjin was a handsome guy, and it was more than understandable that Changbin had lost his mind for him, but that wasn't the only reason.

"As soon as you are dressed up we will focus on makeup and hair" Jeongin smiled and Hyunjin nodded, going to the bathroom once again. For the duration of his short and quick shower, Hyunjin thought about Changbin. How was he supposed to greet him? Should he have kissed him? And where? Cheek? Lips? Or was a simple hello enough? Or maybe he should have hugged him? God, he wanted to hold him in his arms, to make sure it wasn't a dream. He still wanted to smell Changbin's inimitable and unique scent. He didn't even know how to describe it, but he liked it so much, it was his favourite fragrance.

He sighed and started dressing. He wore a black long-sleeved shirt, above it a white shirt, leaving a few buttons open, then he wore the pants, also black. As soon as he finished, he returned to his room and noticed that Jeongin had also placed some accessories on the bed. He took the earrings and put them on, same with his black Louis Vuitton belt, with a small black chain, and his favourite rings.

"Wow, not to brag but I did a great job," Jeongin said, getting up from the bed and motioning Hyunjin to sit down.

"Tsk, it's all thanks to the model" Hyunjin replied, sticking his tongue out and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Stop it, your ego is so big, it doesn't fit in this room" they both laughed at those words, and shortly afterwards Jeongin began applying some makeup on Hyunjin's perfect face. As soon as he got close to his jaw, his breathing cut and his hands stopped in midair.

"That's not true," Hyunjin muttered offended. He had never noticed that scar, perhaps Hyunjin used something to cover it. He wanted to ask him how he got it, even though he was afraid of already knowing it. For that reason he decided not to ask for anything, he knew how sensitive it was for the taller. They hadn't talked about it yet, and Jeongin wanted to do it, but he wanted to wait until Hyunjin was ready to do it too. He sighed slightly and continued applying the makeup.

"But we both know that as soon as you see Binnie-hyung you will start stuttering and blushing," Jeongin teased him again. Hyunjin puffed out his cheeks, but decided not to reply, Jeongin was right.

"I was thinking, is all this necessary?" Hyunjin asked, fiddling with the ring on his index finger, after a few minutes of silence. Jeongin looked at him in confusion and encouraged him to continue.

"I mean, is it really necessary to dress up so well, to wear makeup only to talk to Changbin? It's not the first time that this happens, and I perfectly remember that most of the time I was wearing my pyjamas. It's not even a date," explained Hyunjin, continuing to move that ring.

"I know that you are nervous, but what you are wearing now is not so different from what you wear every day, isn't it? Also knowing Changbin-hyung, he will surely take you to your favourite cafe" replied Jeongin, moving to fix Hyunjin's long hair, who shook his head, in agreement with the younger, he was right.

"Be yourself, Binnie-hyung loves you for this," continued the pink-haired boy, finishing his work.

"Thank you Innie, I don't know what I would have done without you," admitted the taller, holding Jeongin in a strong hug, who returned that small grip.

"You would have panicked and started saying bad words, as you did twenty minutes ago," laughed the youngest, moving away from the hug. Hyunjin smiled and nodded, once again Jeongin was right.

"I gotta go now, Channie is waiting for me. Wear your boots and call me as soon as you get home" and after those words, Jeongin left Hyunjin's room and shortly afterwards his house. Hyunjin smiled and shook his head, and just then Hyunjin's phone rang again. He grabbed it quickly and quietly read the text as if he was afraid of being caught. _I'll wait for you in our place_. This is what the text said. As he read that short sentence, Hyunjin's heart began to beat faster. _Our_. He knew exactly what Changbin was referring to and couldn't be more than happy about the choice. It was a small hill not too far from Hyunjin's home. The two of them found it during a very hot day in summer. All their friends were busy that day, so it was only the two of them. They decided to go for a walk and it was during it, that they found that hill. They decided not to say anything to their friends, they wanted that place to be a secret.

Unavoidably he wondered if Changbin had visited that place in those years. He took note to ask him as soon as he saw him. Before going downstairs, he opened the drawer of the bedside table and took out a necklace. He smiled and stood in front of the mirror to wear it. He was so excited to see Changbin's reaction after seeing it. After wearing it, he went downstairs and while walking by the kitchen, he caught his mother's attention.

"Where are you going?" his mother asked him while drinking a glass of water.

"I'm going out?" he replied ironically as if what he was doing wasn't obvious enough.

"I know that, but with who?" she asked again tilting her head to the right side. For some reason, Hyunjin had avoided telling his parents that he and Jeongin had returned to being friends. Jeongin went to the taller's house every time his parents were out. They had been very lucky that day, Jeongin had left just in time.

"Changbin-hyung," Hyunjin replied without thinking. His hands stopped in midair and tightened the laces tightly. Damn it.

"Excuse me?" the woman asked, raising an eyebrow. Of course, neither she nor her husband had told Hyunjin that the reason why his friends had pushed away from him was his parents. So they both had to lie and make Hyunjin believe that those were his friends' choice.

"You got it, I'm leaving now" replied Hyunjin, annoyed.

"How can you go out with someone who-" Hyunjin didn't let her finish, and quickly left the house, slamming the door behind him. That was one of the main reasons Hyunjin could not be nice to his parents. They always tried to talk about it, even when Hyunjin asked them to stop. They said they understood how he felt, they said they would support him whatever his choice was, yet they seemed to want to wrap him in cotton wool. They were so overwhelming. The black-haired boy shook his head and sighed, it was not the time to think about his parents he had to think only and only about Changbin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it even if nothing "special" or interesting happened. But as I said in the first not, this is a small introduction fro the next part.  
> Leave lots od kudos, and thanks for supporting this fanfiction.
> 
> https://images.app.goo.gl/js3BaVAPXBMwnZuL7 this is basically what Hyunjin is wearing


	8. 8.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hyunjin finally finds out the truth and meets his friends to explain them everything. It seems that everything I back to normal, but Felix's arrival ruins the magic created between Changbin and Hyunjin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We have some Changjin actions here. I really tried my best since I'm not that good at writing these kind of things. Please don't judge me, I'm really sorry if it looks horrible. Next time, if there will be, I'll try harder.

As soon as Hyunjin arrived on the hill, Changbin was already there, sitting on an old and battered bench, absorbed in his thoughts.  
He did not notice Hyunjin's presence until he sat down next to him. Changbin quickly lifted his head and smiled to see the taller one sitting next to him. They looked at each other for interminable minutes, nobody dared to say a word. The hearts of both were beating fast and none of them moved. Both of them did not know what to do or say. Changbin had to say lots of things, but as soon as he saw Hyunjin, his mind went blank and forgot everything. What he knew, however, was that he wanted to kiss him again, uninterruptedly for the rest of his life.

"Okay, why do I feel like this is embarrassing?" Changbin asked chuckling nervously. A few minutes had passed and they had not spoken yet. They had looked at each other again. The taller one laughed.

"It's not, it's just that it's been a while since it was only the two of us," replied the youngest, lowering his tone at the end of the sentence.

"Come here, come to your favourite hyung," Changbin smiled, opening his arms and waiting for Hyunjin to hug him; which happened soon after. The black-haired boy wrapped his arms around the older's neck and hugged him tightly.

"I missed you so much," Hyunjin whispered, burying his head in his neck. He didn't care that they were the ones who left him, Hyunjin loved them, and was willing to forget what had happened. All he needed was exactly in his arms and he promised himself not to lose him once again.

"We met a while ago Jinnie," Changbin laughed slightly hugging him back. He knew it wasn't what the younger one was referring to.

"I haven't had a chance to tell you before, so shut up and say you missed me too," Hyunjin whined. The latter smiled and nodded.

"I missed you too Hyunjinie, a lot," he admitted, hugging him tighter. They remained in that position for a few seconds, before Hyunjin complained that his right leg was numb. Changbin chuckled and broke that contact. He started messaging Hyunjin's leg while looking at him. The black-haired boy laughed, but let him do it, it was a normal thing for the other. Unconsciously, or maybe not, Hyunjin started to play with the necklace, while his piercing was trapped between his teeth which nibbled on it. Changbin found that gesture very hot and for a moment he wanted to be the one biting it. His attention was then caught by the latter's hand.

"How..?" Changbin asked confused, tilting his head slightly.

"I found it while I was packing my bags, it was under the bed," Hyunjin replied smiling softly.

"I thought.."

"You thought you lost it, I know. Maybe I was hoping to give it back to you someday. That's why I wore it for all these years" added the black-haired boy a bit embarrassed.

It was a necklace that Hyunjin had given to Changbin. Not for his birthday or anything, he just wanted to do it. The pendant represented a little dog, Hyunjin's favourite animal. He thought it was perfect for Changbin. He had thought of giving his favourite person something that represented his favourite animal. Somewhat, he wanted Changbin to think of him every time he looked at it. He wanted him to protect it as Changbin protected him. From that day Changbin had never taken it off, even if a couple of times he had lost it, making Hyunjin sad. He knew he wasn't doing it on purpose, but it was really important to the taller.

Their friends made fun of him for saying that he was now bound to Hyunjin, as if that necklace were a ring, of those who exchange couples.

"I want to know everything you've done, where you've been, I'm all ears" smiled the older looking at Hyunjin. At those words, the taller one smile disappeared from his lips. Changbin noticed that change of expression and stopped his moves.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked then. He was scared that Hyunjn would get up and leave, leaving him alone like an idiot. Hyunjin blinked a few times and looked at Changbin. He felt bad to see him so worried. So he sighed and shook his head. It was a simple question and there was no reason not to answer. He too wanted to know what Changbin had done in those years, he was dying to know if Changbin had had relationships or not.

"No, everything's okay," Hyunjin replied smiling. Changbin sighed in relief that he hadn't ruined everything. He knew that for Hyunjin, as well as for him, that was a very delicate topic, but sooner or later they would have to talk about it or they wouldn't have been able to leave everything behind and move on.

"I've been in America," Hyunjin started to talk, feeling the lump in his throat getting bigger. He had to be strong, if he had been able to talk about it with Changbin, then he could have with the others. He had to get rid of everything. He had always tried to avoid the talk; when his classmates asked him why he moved to America, he had always been vague, answering that his father had changed his job. He hadn't told anyone the truth, but he couldn't keep it inside anymore.

"Wow, what was it like?" Changbin asked excitedly. Hyunjin chuckled at that reaction.

"A bit like Seoul, very hot and very chaotic" replied Hyunjin.

"What about boys?" this time Changbin asked with a weird expression on his face. Hyunjin wondered why he asked him that question.

"Well some were cute and no, although many asked me out, I never went past the first date" replied Hyunjin anticipating the question that the other wanted to ask him. Changbin nodded, not entirely convinced by that answer. So he went silent. He was so annoyed that some random boys on the other side of the world had dared to do what he, in ten years of friendship, had failed to do.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Hyunjin asked in confusion, unable to read the other's gaze. But then the answer appeared in large letters, he blushed and shook his head vigorously.

"I'm just curious," Changbin replied with a shrug. Hyunjin sighed with a nod. He didn't know why he was embarrassed and why he didn't want to say it. After all, he and Changbin had always told each other everything, without any embarrassment.

"A couple I think, I don't remember," Hyunjin replied and that made Changbin frown even more. He could not stand the idea that someone had even dared to breathe the same air as Hyunjin, much less someone who had kissed him, or done something else. That idea began to bother his mind and he wished he hadn't asked that question.

"But you were so small," Changbin complained, taking Hyunjin by the shoulders and shaking him slightly. He was. As soon as his first year of high school began, Hyunjin started making new friends day after day, good and bad, especially bad. Despite the many things he had to do and the effort to keep his grades high, there has been a period of his third year in which he felt lost. The first two years he had tried to keep his study, his schedule and friends at the same pace. Sometimes, however, it happened that he skipped his swimming or soccer lessons to go out. There had been some episodes he wasn't very proud of, but that was the past.

"It didn't matter, after what happened I didn't care about anything," Hyunjin replied shaking his head. That sent Changbin away. Maybe the time had come to speak seriously, no jokes or games.

"I was... devastated and my parents didn't help make me feel better," he continued to talk. Changbin decided to stay silent. He thought the boy in front of him needed to let everything out. He would talk later, at that moment he just wanted to listen to what Hyunjin had to say, it didn't matter if that meant staying there until the next morning. He could feel the desperation in the tone of his voice and he had noticed that he was trying hard not to cry. He could hardly imagine what Hyunjin had gone through, which is why he was there.

"After the operation, I had to stay in bed for months and I could only eat liquids. My parents only cared about finishing school and then sending me to my relatives," laughed the taller ironically.

"I lost weight and kept losing it day after day. Even though I healed, my appetite was gone, I couldn't put anything in my stomach without throwing it up afterwards" continued Hyunjin. All the moments of those three years had shown up in his mind, leaving him with a sense of nausea. Remembering those days were horrible for Hyunjin.

"It didn't matter how much I rebelled against their will, 'it's for the best' they answered every time. For the best? How good could it be, for me, to be away from my real family, from you?" Hyunjin then looked at Changbin and was surprised to find him with his eyes and mouth wide open. The latter was truly shocked by the words of the latter. For all those years he, as well as all the others, were convinced that it had been Hyunjin's choice, they were convinced that it was he who had told the parents to make them leave the hospital and never show up again.

"And when they told me you didn't want to see anymore, I felt like dying" Hyunjin whispered and at that moment his voice cracked. He would have burst into tears at any moment.

"What? Is this what they told you?" Changbin asked even more shocked. He felt like a complete idiot. It was obvious that those were not Hyunjin's words, he should have known it, he should have yelled and fought against his parents. He should have fought for him and if he did, they probably wouldn't have been in that situation, or maybe nothing would have changed. But he should have tried, without living with regret and guilt. When Hyunjin nodded, Changbin ran a hand over his face with a sigh.

"Hyunjin, that day your parents told us that you were the one who didn't want to see us anymore, that's why we didn't show up anymore," Changbin explained, turning to look at Hyunjin. The black-haired boy widened his eyes.

"W-What? What ... what are you saying?" he stuttered confusedly looking at Changbin.

"I'm so sorry Jinnie, we should have fought instead of giving up like that," Changbin said placing a hand on the other's shoulder, squeezing it slightly.

"I can't believe it," Hyunjin kept repeating. He started to feel tears burn his eyes and tried very hard not to cry.

"I think your parents blamed us for what happened to you," Changbin added, shaking his head. Hyunjin got up.

"I have to go. See you ... see you tomorrow hyung," he said softly and then started walking home. He was still trying to understand and process what Changbin had told him. For three years he had been convinced that his best friends had abandoned him. For three years his parents had lied to him. For three years he blamed himself for everything that had happened, only to find out that it was all his parents' fault. Those who were supposed to support and protect him had killed him instead. As soon as he got home he ran in his room, ignoring his parents who had greeted him as soon as he entered. He didn't want to talk with them, he didn't want to see them. He knew that if he talked to them he would start screaming and coming up against them. He made sure he had locked the door and then went to sit, back against the headboard and head against the wall. He put on the headphones and turned the volume up.

He had to clear his mind. He needed to clear his mind before talking to them. What Changbin had told him had shocked him. He did not understand how his parents had done something like that to him. They knew how much Hyunjin cared about his friends, they had grown up together, had their first experiences together. They were like brothers and his parents had broken their bond. He would have never forgiven them.

As the minutes passed and those thoughts continued to bother him, he started to sob, warm tears began to roll down his cheeks. He covered his face with his hands and shook his head vigorously. Her hands moved into her hair and tugged tightly onto them. He took the pillow and buried his head in it, screaming, he screamed with all the breath he had in his body. The sobs became more and more frequent and noisy; at that point, he didn't care about being heard by his parents.

Within seconds he got up and walked to his desk. In another few seconds, all the things on it were laying on the floor and he screamed again. His laptop, his books, photos, everything on the floor. The frames shattered and pieces of glass spread around. Hyunjin walked on it, cutting the sole of his foot, but he didn't care. The pain he felt emotionally was stronger than the physical pain.

He was furious. In a few moments sadness was replaced by anger. He tore the posters off the wall, overthrow everything off the bedside table. As he walked his injured foot left bloodstains on the floor and when it started to hurt, he had to sit down.

He was sitting in the middle of his room, surrounded by all that chaos, which perfectly reflected what he had in his head. At that point, he heard a knock on the door and his mother's voice calling him.

"Go away," he screamed with the few forces left. He hugged his legs and placed his head on his knees. He wanted time to stop, to stop all the pain he was feeling.

"Hyunjin, darling, please open up. Your father and I are worried," the woman replied knocking again. At those words, the black-haired boy stood up and ran to the door opening it forcefully. This gesture surprised the woman, who as soon as noticed in what state his room was, opened her eyes wide.

"Hyunjin, what's going on?" asked his father entering the room. Hyunjin still hadn't opened his mouth. He was trying to calm down to talk, but his mind was clouded.

"Is that blood?" the woman asked, scared.

"Why is your room like this?" the father asked, kneeling on the ground to collect the pieces of glass.

"We heard you scream, what's wrong? Did something happen with Changbin?" the woman asked, but before Hyunjin could answer she talked again.

"I knew you shouldn't have gone out with him, those guys don't-"

"What, um? Those guys what mom?" Hyunjin exploded looking up at his parents. He was breathing heavily, his hands closed in two fists. He was trying to hold back, but it was hard.

"They hurt you! You almost died because of them!" the woman cried. Now Hyunjin's gaze leaned on the mother. He felt his cheeks go on fire and his tingling hands, he would burst at any moment. At that moment he realized that he could no longer restrain himself. This was the right time, he had to say everything he thought or would never do.

"No! I tried to protect Jeongin. I almost died because of you," Hyunjin screamed, pointing at himself.

"W-What ... what are you talking about?" the woman asked confused. Hyunjin intended to hurt his parents. He wanted them to feel his pain, they deserved it.

"You have lied to me all this time, telling me that my best friends, my real family, had abandoned me," he replied. His tone was harsh and his words hurtful. Her mother opened her mouth to reply, but Hyunjin preceded her.

"How did I find out? Changbin told me everything. You are nothing but hypocritical assholes," Hyunjin spewed out, looking down on his parents.

"Hyunjin stop it" the father interrupted, walking towards the woman and putting a hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down.

"No, you stop it. You have no idea how I have felt in these years, don't act like good parents, you don't know shit about what I went through. I was dying inside day by day, but you only cared about the appearance, I was dying in front of your eyes and you never noticed. I tried to appear perfect in your eyes, but it was all futile, "Hyunjin said, shaking his head. He was tired of that situation, he wanted to be alone.

"I hate you," he whispered after a few moments of silence.

"Now get out of my fucking room. Get out!" he opened the door wide and motioned for his parents to leave. As soon as they left, he locked the door. He sighed and collapsed against it, closing his eyes. He felt lighter, but he couldn't say he was feeling better. He smiled bitterly and dropped on the ground.

"Fuck it," he whispered, taking his head in his hands.

The following morning he woke up with a terrible headache and his neck was hurting. He looked around and it took him a while to realize that he was still sitting on the ground. He had fallen asleep in that position without even realizing it. He got up slowly and stretched his arms and neck.

"Damn that hurts," he murmured walking towards the bed and sitting on it. He took his phone to check the time, he had half an hour to get ready and go to school. He wanted to stay home, he felt terrible, but he needed to see Changbin, he knew that as soon as his eyes had settled on his hyung, he would have felt better. Then he noticed some texts from Jeongin and Changbin. The first asked him how it had gone with Changbin, the other asked him how he was. He had completely forgotten that he had to call Jeongin. He replied to both with an 'I'll explain it to school' and then got up to go to the bathroom.

He positioned himself in front of the mirror and wrinkled his nose. His eyes were glassy and swollen, his hair a mess. He sighed and washed his face, then brushed his teeth and tried to fix his hair. They were so long, but he liked them, he had never had them like that, and it was... interesting. Inside he hoped that Changbin liked them too. He went back to his room and at that moment he realized the mess he had done. He sighed once again and walked to the closet. H took the first things he found and quickly changed. He wore a black oversized hoodie and black jeans. He took his backpack, not bothering to take the books he needed, and after grabbing his phone, he went downstairs. He quickly put on his shoes and after wearing his mask and the hood of his sweatshirt, he left the house, everything without saying a single word to his parents.

He had no intention of talking to them.

He walked quickly to school, but when he realized that he was late, he decided to walk, also because he had started to sweat. About twenty minutes later he finally arrived at his destination. The first hour was almost over so he decided to wait in the bathroom.

"Jinnie?" Hyunjin started at that name, accidentally slamming his knee against the corner of the wall. He cursed, making Changbin chuckle.

"Are you okay?" he asked approaching the taller one. Hyunjin nodded and as soon as his eyes landed on him, a wide smile appeared on his lips. He knew it would happen. Changbin always managed to make him feel better.

"What are you doing here?" Hyunjin asked tilting his head to the side. Changbin shrugged and leaned against the wall, looking at the boy in front of him.

"So? What happened?" Changbin asked. Before answering Hyunjin sat on the ground, bringing his legs against his chest and motioning Changbin to sit next to him. The taller rested his head on the older one's shoulder and closed his eyes for a few moments. He opened them and looked at Changbin, starting to explain what had happened.

"I don't want to go home, can I stay with you for a while?" he asked when he finished explaining.

"Maybe we can call the others, I want to see them," he added showing off a toothy smile that made Changbin's heart melt, and found himself nodding. He never felt like denying something to Hyunjin, especially when he looked at him in that way. The two continued to look at each other for what seemed like endless minutes, when Changbin approached Hyunjin, hinting at what he wanted to do. The taller opened his eyes wide and pressed his hand to Changbin's lips with a slight chuckle. It was truly amazing how Changbin's mere presence made him feel better, how his head got rid of all worries and how his heart was lighter. All thanks to the person next to him.

"I was hoping you forgot about it," complained the older one, the other's hand still covering his lips.

"Someone could have seen us. You know what it means to me," Hyunjin chuckled, moving his hand away from Changbin, who nodded, although a small pout had appeared on his face.

That same afternoon Hyunjin was at Changbin's place. They were in the older one room and Hyunjin was surprised that nothing had changed, everything was as he remembered it. He was also surprised to see old photos of them.

He was a bit scared though. He didn't know how others would react after seeing him. But he hoped they were happy because he intended to hug everyone, one by one, and tell them how sorry he was and how much he had missed them. Hyunjin had made sure Changbin didn't tell the others that he was there, he wanted to surprise them.

"Don't think too much, I'm sure they'll be happy to see you," Changbin tried to make him feel better. Hyunjin nodded unsurely. He wanted everything back to normal, he wanted his friends, nothing else. Or maybe he wanted something else.

"Oh, hyung," said the younger one, bringing his hands behind his neck. Changbin looked at him in confusion, but as soon as he saw the necklace, he smiled and sat down next to Hyunjin.

"Turn around," he added, looking the other. Changbin did what Hyunjin told him and soon after he felt Hyunjin closing the necklace around his neck. Hyunjin's hands were cold, which made the latter shiver.

"Back to its owner," said the older one, turning to look at the black-haired boy. At those words, Hyunjin blushed slightly and Changbin noticed it but decided not to say anything. He wanted to stop for a moment to admire the younger boy's pale red chubby cheeks. _Adorable_ , he thought. At that moment the Seo doorbell rang insistently, signalling the arrival of their friends.

Hyunjin felt his heart start to beat fast and his hands sweating. He got out of bed and screamed, making Changbin laugh. For the millionth time, he told him to stay calm and they went downstairs. Hyunjin went into the living room, to get there you had to cross a small corridor, so it was perfect. He sat on the couch and took a deep breath. He started to repeat that everything would have been okay, they were his best friends they would have been happy to see him. The fingers of his hands tapped on his knees and as soon as he heard Jisung's high voice, he straightened his back and his hands closed in two fists. He had to calm down. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and took another deep breath.

"Holy shit" he heard screaming. At that point, he opened his eyes to find six boys in front of him, except Changbin, who were looking at him in shock, all except Jeongin and Changbin. Jisung was the first to move and threw himself on the taller one, holding him in his arms. Hyunjin relaxed and returned the hug.

"Han stop it, Minho is jealous," Chan joked making everyone laugh. Jisung ignored him and moved away from the hug only to take Hyunjin's face in his small hands.

"Is it you?" Jisung asked, causing Hyunjin's laughter, who nodded. Although they had met just before all that mess happened, the two were close. They were the rowdy ones, they got in troubles and Chan always scolded them.

"Piss off Han, it's our turn," Seungmin complained, trying, with Minho's help, to pull him away from Hyunjin. When Minho miraculously managed to take Jisung away from Hyunjin, the others also came to hug him. As he promised himself, he repeated the same thing to each of them, _I'm so sorry, I missed you_.  
Chan was the last one. The two looked at each other for a few moments before the older one grabbed Hyunjin by the wrist and pulled him against him, hugging him tightly. The taller one returned the older one, tugging one his hoodie.

"I'm so sorry," Hyunjin kept repeating and small tears started to roll down his cheeks, wetting the other's sweatshirt. He wanted him to know, he wanted to make sure everyone knew. Bangchan nodded and soon broke that contact.

"It's all right, don't cry um?" Chan smiled slightly, ruffling his hair. Hyunjin nodded and wiped away his tears with the sleeve of his hoodie. Soon after they started talking about everything that happened in those years. Hyunjin was crying with laughter, he couldn't believe he had missed all those things, but he was really happy at that moment. Then they started to talk about that night. Hyunjin explained the truth to them.

"Assholes" Jisung let out "Sorry" he added immediately after looking at Hyunjin, who shook his head.

"It doesn't matter, they are," the taller shrugged, giggling at the end.

"Now enough about that, let's consider that chapter officially closed, okay?" Chan said and everyone nodded. They were all relieved that the story had ended, and happy to have Hyunjin back in their lives. Soon after the boys began to tell what had happened in his absence. He had missed those moments, he had missed all of them.

"And then Jisung asked her if she had a boyfriend and two seconds later a guy who was three times Han came out of nowhere and he ran away screaming" at those words everyone burst into laughter. Changbin had been watching Hyunjin all the time. His heart warmed at seeing him so happy.

They spent most of the afternoon talking, they even had drinks and food. Everything went well until Hyunjin spilled all the glass of soda he was drinking on him for too much laughter. The black-haired boy screamed dramatically, making his friends laugh. Changbin got up and motioned for the taller one to follow him and so he did. The older one knew how much the other hated when his precious clothes got dirty.

"You're always the same," Changbin teased him as soon as they entered his room and then closed the door behind him. Hyunjin whined and sat on the bed. Without thinking twice he took off his hoodie and threw it on the floor. Changbin was facing the closet and hadn't seen him yet. But as soon as he turned, the hoodie in his hand fell on the floor and his eyes closed. Hyunjin laughed at that reaction and picked up Changbin's sweatshirt, then wear it and sat on the bed again

"You can open your eyes now hyung" Hyunjin laughed tilting his head and the other did as said. A smile appeared on his face as soon as he saw the other in his sweatshirt. It wasn't the first time Hyunjin had worn his clothes, but at that moment his heart started beating fast. They stopped to look at each other in the eyes. Changbin walked over to Hyunjin and sat down next to him. Again, they were close and none of them opened their mouths. Changbin approached Hyunjin and the latter, this time, did nothing to stop the boy in front of him.

Hyunjin was about to say something, but in a few seconds, Changbin pressed his lips on the taller one, making his eyes widen and his body froze. After a few seconds of operating the situation, Hyunjin relaxed and closed his eyes, finally returning the kiss, which had been a little peck until then. And like the day before, Hyunjin felt thousands of butterflies flutter in his stomach. As time passed, the kiss became more and more passionate, more and more eager. Changbin's arms wrapped around Hyunjin's small waist and easily lifted him, making him sit on his lap.

Hyunjin giggled softly wrapping his arms around the older one's neck. God how much he loved that giggle. Changbin's hands sneaked under the other's hoodie and grabbed his hips, an action that made Hyunjin sigh ecstatic. He liked that side of Changbin, not that he had seen it so many times, but those few times were enough. After another exchange of glances, their lips met once again, but this time the kiss was eager from the beginning. They kissed passionately as if their lives depended on it. They weren't going separate even to get some air, the desire was too much. Hyunjin's hands moved in Changbin's hair, pulling them, making him groan in his mouth. At that point the older man's hands held the sweatshirt's edge and slightly raised it, making Hyunjin shiver at the contact with the cold air of the room.

Hyunjin was lightheaded, worrying about anything. Both wanted that to happen and they had no intention of stopping. Changbin had always wished for that to happen. Hyunjin was all he wanted, him and no one else. He understood it at that moment. He had to make him his, as soon as possible. Back then Hyunjin felt loved, he felt safe in Changbin's arms. He wanted to stay there forever, he wanted Changbin to hold him that way every day. He wanted Changbin every day. Words weren't necessary, they would talk later. They only wanted to love each other.

Hyunjin felt his cheeks burn, but decided not to think about it. In a few seconds, the sweatshirt was laying on the floor, then Hyunjin helped the other to take off his shirt and held his breath for a few seconds. Changbin was beautiful and Hyunjin could not believe that all of that was happening. Eventually, Changbin moved away from Hyunjin and both took a breath. After a few moments, Changbin started to kiss his neck, who tilted his head to the right to give him more space. Hyunjin closed his eyes and a few soft moans left his lips, making Changbin grin against his skin.

Changbin nibbled on a spot, then started sucking on it. Hyunjin's back slightly arched and rolled his hips, making their crotches to rub against each other. Both moaned and continued kissing. Changbin wrapped the younger boy's legs around his waist and easily got up flipping their positions, making Hyunjin lay on the bed and towered him.

Finally, after minutes spent kissing, they caught their breath. Hyunjin's lips were red and if possible even more swollen than they already were. Changbin found them beautiful. He loved the other's lips and had never had a problem saying it openly, they were so perfect and that little ring drove him crazy. The older one smiled and closed his eyes, leaning their foreheads.

At some point, they heard noises coming from downstairs and moved away. They quickly dressed up and tried to make themselves presentable.

"It's still weird with that piercing," Changbin said after a few moments of silence. Hyunjin did not have time to answer, because he was cut off by the door that opened and preceded by a deep voice.

"What's weird?" Felix asked with an arched eyebrow and his arms crossed over his chest. Changbin froze as soon as his eyes landed on Felix.

"What is he doing here?" then he continued annoyed, pointing to Hyunjin. Changbin's gaze went from Hyunjin to Felix and vice versa. He was panicking, that was exactly what he wanted to avoid. Felix didn't like Hyunjin and the same was for the taller one. Felix considered him a rival and at that moment more than ever. Why were his boyfriend and his enemy in the same room when all their friends were downstairs? Why was his enemy wearing Changbin's sweatshirt?

"L-Lix what are you doing here? I thought you were sick" the older one asked in confusion. He had to get out of that situation, but he didn't know-how.

"I didn't think I needed permission to go to my boyfriend's house," the red-haired boy replied. As he spoke he remarked the words 'my boyfriend', to make it clear that _Changbin, his Changbin_ , was off-limits.

"B-Boyfriend? W-what does that mean?" murmured the taller one looking at Changbin. He could already feel the tears in his eyes and his heart broke.

"Jinnie, wait-" the older one started to speak, but Hyunjin didn't let him finish. He shook his head and quickly left the room. He had been a complete idiot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked, my heart broke while writing the last part and Hyunjin and his parents' one. This chapter is a bit longer than the others, I wanted to explain everything in detail and not miss anything, and I really wanted to end it in this way.  
> I apologize if there's any mistake, but I wanna rememberer you guys that English in not my first language.  
> Leaves lots of kudos and comments, remember I stalk you guys :3


	9. 9.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Knowing that Changbin has a boyfriend left Hyunjin speechless and astonished. He wants to forget everything, all the good memories with Changbin, their kisses, everything. But will he be able to?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tissues needed!  
> Or maybe not?

_**(Before Felix arrives)**_  
Hyunjin and Changbin had just walked upstairs, leaving their friends alone in the living room, who continued talking.  
"How did we not recognize him that day?" Jisung asked. As usual, he was sitting on Minho's legs; the latter was playing with his hair.

"He has changed a lot since the last time we saw him, it was almost impossible" Seungmin replied shaking his head. They were talking about Hyunjin. Finally, their best friend was with them. None of them understood why his parents had kept him away from them. They knew they wanted to protect him, but what they had done had hurt them. They should at least have asked how things had gone. Instead, his mother had accused them cruelly, without knowing that her son was trying to protect Jeongin. A noble thing from the taller one.

"You think he recognized us that day?" Minho asked this time, his hands still in Jisung's hai and the latter chuckled.

"He recognized me" Jeongin replied, drawing everyone's attention.

"That's why he ran away. He was terrified when I ran after him. He asked me on his knees not to tell you anything, I couldn't do otherwise" the younger said of all, looking down. He felt a hand resting on his back; he immediately recognized Chan's touch and then curled up beside him, hiding his face in his shirt.

"It's okay Innie it was only a misunderstanding. It's not our fault, much less Hyunjin's" said Chan, wrapping his arm around the little boy's body, holding him tightly by his side. Jeongin nodded unsurely. Chan kissed his forehead that made the younger one smile. The six boys started talking when at some point someone knocked insistently on the door. Chan got up confused and went to open the door, finding a not so happy Felix in front of him.

"Lix, what are you doing here? I thought you were sick" Chan said even more confused. There were a few reasons why the red-haired boy was there, and they all led to Changbin. The latter, however, was very busy at that time; all his thoughts were focused on Hyunjin.

"Where's Changbin?" Felix asked instead, ignoring the older one. He entered the house and walked to the living room. As soon as the boys saw him, they stopped talking and silence descended into the room. Felix's eyes studied the entire room, but when he realized that his boyfriend wasn't there, he sighed.

"Bin isn't there, he went out a while ago," Minho spoke, trying to save the situation. They certainly couldn't say that his boyfriend was upstairs with another boy. But Felix didn't believe him. Changbin never left the boys alone in his home. His mother had too many valuables around. A couple of times it had happened that the boys had broken some in Changbin's absence. From that day it was forbidden to stay at home Seo alone.

"Bullshit" Felix murmured before turning around and running upstairs. He had to find Changbin and talk to him, it was too important. Chan tried to stop him, but it was all in vain. When he got to the older's room, he opened the door without thinking twice. What he never expected was to find his boyfriend with his enemy.

 _ **(From where Hyunjin finds out that Changbin has a boyfriend)**_  
Hyunjin ran downstairs to the front door; he grabbed his shoes and wore them quickly. He opened the door and walked outside, without bothering to close it once he was out. When he passed the living room, the boys called him but he did not turn around. He had to get out of that place as soon as possible. A moment before he was happy, finally in the arms of the one who had stolen his heart, the one he loved with every single part of his body, the one who filled his head every moment of his days, and a moment later his heart was broken. He had been a fool, a complete idiot. He should have understood it, he should have known. 

Hyunjin continued to run without a specific destination. He did not want to go home, and if he went to the dance school, Changbin would have found him immediately, if the idea of running after him was an option for him. At that point it was impossible. Hyunjin ran and did not stop until his legs were shaking and until it became difficult to breathe, also caused by the tears and sobs that escaped from his lips. He looked around for a place to hide. He didn't know where he was, or maybe he did, but at that moment his head hurt. He looked around before realizing that he was in the suburbs, far away from his home. He was near a building site of a house under construction. There was nobody there, so he decided to enter the building site. He walked for a few meters until his legs couldn't move and he fell to the ground on his knees. He swore and sat up, rubbing his knees. After a few seconds, he realized that he was wearing Changbi's sweatshirt and it was there that he burst into tears.

He covered his face with his hands and shook his head. His body was shaking with all sobs and his throat was starting to burn. He tried to wipe away the tears, but it was useless. As soon as he dried old tears, new ones began to roll down his cheeks. Within two days his heart had been stabbed to exhaustion by the people he cared about most. First his parents, then the boy he was in love with. He wanted it all to end as soon as possible. He was tired. Tired of crying for people who didn't care about him.

Meanwhile, Changbin was still in his room with Felix. The two were looking at each other without saying a word. Changbin wanted to run after Hyunjin, he wanted to do it, but the boy in front of him stopped him. First of all, he had to fix things with the red-haired boy, running after the taller one would only make the situation more complicated.  
"What were you doing with him?" Felix asked after endless seconds of silence.

"His sweatshirt was stained and I gave him one of mine" Changbin replied. He wasn't lying though. Felix raised an eyebrow.

"Do you think i'm stupid?" Felix asked as he approached Changbin. The latter looked at him confused.

"Of course not Lix, I don't understand what you're talking about." Changbin was panicking, and when he was, he started to talk nonsense, without realizing what he was saying.

"I saw it, I saw how his skin was marked," Felix said harshly. He couldn't be one hundred per cent sure of what he was thinking, but he had a way to find out. He was scared, he knew that if he was right he would get hurt. For this reason, he had to know, because if what he thought was wrong, then he would have felt much better.

"Are you saying it was me, Lix?" Changbin replied raising an eyebrow. He felt horrible, but he saw no other solution.

"You tell me," shrugged the younger one, tilting his head to one side.

"I didn't mark his neck," Changbin said quickly, shaking his head. Then Felix understood. The truth was clear in his eyes.

"I didn't say it was the neck" Felix bit his lower lip trying to hold back the tears. 

"W-What?" The older one hesitated, widening his eyes. Changbin understood that he had fucked himself up with his own words.

"I said his skin was, how did you know it was the neck?" Felix asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"B-because it's the only part you could see"

"Tell me the truth hyung. I'm begging you, don't do this to me" the tone of the younger boy's voice was desperate. He no longer wanted to suffer, he was tired. Ever since Changbin heard about Hyunjin, he had changed, the youngest had noticed it immediately.

Changbin took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a few seconds. He had to do it. That was the right time, not later, not the next day, but at that moment.

"I'm sorry Lix, really, but I don't think we should be together anymore," Changbin said slowly, lowering his head. After those words, he felt his heart lighter. He finally realized that for all those years, he had tried to hide and repress those feelings he had for Hyunjin. Maybe he had tried to do it with Felix and he felt like a monster for that.

"Is it because of him?" the younger one asked in a whisper. When Changbin nodded slowly, small tears began to roll down Felix's cheeks, but he wiped them away. He couldn't cry at the moment, he had to be strong.

"Have you loved me in these years? Have you tried to love me as I love you?" the red-haired boy asked in a desperate tone.

"I thought I loved you, I was sure of my feelings, but when-" Changbin began to speak, but was interrupted by Felix.

"But when you saw Hyunjin you realized that it was not love what you felt, but you just wanted to fill a void left by him" added the younger, looking Changbin in the eye.

"Lix-" Changbin felt more and more horrible, he didn't want that, he didn't want yo hurt Felix. But perhaps there was no other solution. There was no way in which none of them would get hurt, it was inevitable.

"I-it's all right. I came to tell you that I have to go back to Australia and ask you if I should or not, but I think I will" the younger one lowered his head for a few seconds smiling bitterly. He couldn't believe it was the end between him and Changbin. The red-haired boy was sure the other was the right person, but maybe it wasn't the same for the older one.

"It was nice while it lasted hyung, I want you to know that I loved you with all of me. I hope you can love him as much as I loved you," continued the boy, seeing that Changbin had not talked yet. The two looked at each other for a few seconds before Changbin approached Felix and hugged him. It was something that surprised the red-haired boy but returned that hug. They stayed in that position before Chan entered the room. Felix moved away quickly and cleared his throat.

"Sorry I didn't mean to overhear, but... Fel, are you going away?" asked the platinum-haired boy approaching his friend, who nodded.

"I have to. I'll be back soon, don't forget me," Felix said giggling at the end of the sentence. Chan squeezed the smaller one in his arms and ruffled his hair. When Felix joined the group, Chan had always been close to him, mainly because the other still did not know the language, then they always spoke in English. Chan helped him a lot to learn Korean and get used to it. The two were very close. After that hug, the three boys went downstairs and Felix communicated the news to his friends. Someone cried, Jisung above all, and someone recommended that he come back soon.

Changbin instead looked around, hoping to see a tall and thin figure, but it was not like that. He frowned and bit his lower lip. He had messed up with Hyunjin, he should have told him that he had a boyfriend, instead of continuing to lie to him and behave like that.  
Jeongin walked over to Changbin and tapped his index finger on the older boy's shoulder, drawing his attention.

"Hyunjin-hyung ran away, I don't know what happened, but I hope he's okay," Jeongin said. Changbin looked at him for a few moments before turning away and running towards the front door. He put on his shoes and left the house, leaving everyone confused. He had to find him.

"Changbin! Changbin wait!" Chan ran after him grabbing him by the wrist.

"Where the hell are you going?" the older one asked with a confused look on his face.

"I have to find Hyunjin, hyung, I have to ... I have to find him"

"Okay. We'll look for him together" Changbin nodded.

"Let's go"

As soon as the two returned home they began to divide into groups, to have a wider range of research. Minho and Chan would go with Changbin, Jisung with Seungmin and lastly Jeongin and Felix. As soon as the groups were decided, the eight boys left the house and went in three different directions, phone in their hands in case someone found the taller one. After about two hours it started to get dark and searching became increasingly difficult. The boys screamed Hyunjin's name, without receiving an answer. Jisung and Seungmin had gone to his house, just to be sure, but obviously, he wasn't there. Jeongin and Felix at the dance school, but he wasn't there either. His house and school were too obvious places, the boys had thought, but it was better to be sure, to exclude any doubts.  
While the two groups remained in the city, Chan, Minho and Changbin had moved to the suburbs.

"Hyunjin!" Changbin shouthed for the umpteenth time, and for the umpteenth time, he received no response. He was starting to lose hope at that point, but he had to keep searching.

"The boys have searched everywhere in the city, he's not anywhere," Minho said, who had just finished talking on the phone with Jisung.

"Maybe he went back home," Chan said, tilting his head.

"No, he would never do that." Changbin shook his head and started walking again. He wasn't going to stop looking for him, even if that meant staying up for whole days.

"Okay, so let's try to call him, maybe he has the sound on," Minho suggested, and Changbin nodded, taking his phone out of his jeans pocket.

"It is better if we call him. If he sees that you are calling him, he could turn off the phone," Minho said and Changbin sighed, handing him the phone. Minho quickly typed Hyunjin's number on the keyboard and then brought the phone to his ear.

"It's ringing," he whispered as soon as she heard a few rings. Changbin sighed in relief. The three boys stayed silent and at one point they heard a phone ringing not so far from them.

Hyunjin widened his eyes and tried to turn off his phone. His phone kept ringing, so he decided to leave it there and stood up, starting to run. Maybe it hadn't been a good idea to leave it there, so he decided to go back and was relieved that he had stopped ringing. As soon as he came back though, he froze on the spot. Chan, Changbin and Minho were there, Chan holding the taller's phone.

"C-Changbin?" the taller stuttered taking a step back.

"What are you doing here?" the black-haired boy asked again. As soon as his eyes met those of Changbin, he felt his heart skipping a beat. He no longer had any tears in his body to cry, after spending hours and hours screaming and crying, but at that moment he felt on the verge of another hysterical cry.

"We've been looking for you all over the town. Come with us now, okay?" Chan spoke slowly approaching the younger. Hyunjin looked at him unsure, before grabbing Chan's hand and nodding. He was tired and wanted to lay on his bed and get up two days later. Everything was hurting. Changbin looked at him from afar and noticed how the taller one tried to ignore him. It hurt him, but he knew he deserved it. He hated to see Hyunjin in that condition, especially if it was because of him.  
The four boys started walking back to Changbin's house, while the latter spoke on the phone with Jeongin to tell him that they had finally found the taller one, then he also informed Seungmin and told both of them to go to his house. The way back was very quiet. Hyunjin was attached to Chan and had no intention of letting go, while Minho and Changbin were behind them. The latter did not look away from Hyunjin even for a second. He wasn't bothered that Hyunjin and Chan were so close, mostly he couldn't stand the fact that the taller was avoiding him and ignoring him, but again, he thinks he deserved it.  
As soon as they arrived at Changbin's house, the others were already there. Jeongin smiled, glad that Hyunjin was okay, physically at least. The other smiled to see their friend. The younger moved closer to the taller one and hugged him.

"I'm glad you're okay," whispered the youngest before entering the house, following everyone else. Hyunjin sighed and grabbed Chan's wrist before he could enter.

"Chan-hyung can I stay with you, please?" murmured the taller looking at the bigger.

"If I go to Jeongin's place he could tell Changbin to come, and I don't want to," the younger added, shaking his head. He wanted to be in a safe place. His house was not. He would go to Jeongin, but he just wanted to avoid seeing the boy who broke his heart.

"Isn't it better if you go home? Your parents are worried," Minho said, who had not yet entered the house. Hyunjin laughed at those words.

"Worried? This is new," he laughed again. The two boys did not understand that reaction, it was true that his parents were worried, or at least that was what Jisung had told him.

"They never worried about me, why would they be now? It doesn't matter where I am or what I do," the taller added, shaking his head. It was really hard for him to believe those words, if they had been, they would have called him, or at least they would have sent a message. Minho nodded and entered the house. He would never understand it.

"Okay, you can stay with me, as long as you tell me what happened," Chan said nodding. Hyunjin smiled gratefully. He was grateful to have friends he worried about no for him and that they take care of him.

"I'll tell the others we're going then" added the older one, turning to enter the house.

"Can you take my sweatshirt in Changbin-hyung's room, please? Can you also say bye to the others for me? I don't want to go in," the taller asked and Chan nodded before entering the house.  
Hyunjin leaned against the front door and sighed closing his eyes for a few moments. He could not wait to lay down and sleep. He wanted to forget that day. Actually, he hoped it had all been a dream. He wanted to erase that kiss with Changbin, he wanted to erase every emotion and kill those damn butterflies that fluttered around his stomach, even at the thought of the older one. Even if he wanted to hate him with all of his heart, he knew it was impossible. He could never hate Changbin, he wasn't even sure he could have other feelings outside of love for him.

"We can go now" Chan woke him up from his thoughts. Hyunjin looked at him and then realized that the older one was holding out his hoodie. He took it and thanked him, then they started walking towards the older's place. The walk was silent, and Hyunjin was grateful for it. Chan understood that the younger one needed to stay calm, so he left his space. As soon as they got to the apartment, Hyunjin lay down on the couch and closed his eyes, sighing. _Finally._

"I guess asking if you are hungry or if you want to take a shower is useless" the older one chuckled and walked in the kitchen to get two glasses of water.

"I gladly accept the shower," Hyunjin replied, sitting up. Chan entered the living room and handed the glass to Hyunjin. The taller took the glass and drank the water in one breath.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" Chan asked at one point, sitting on the armchair next to the couch. Hyunjin started to play with the glass. He didn't want to talk about it, but that was the only condition Chan had put in to make him stay there, so he nodded.

"Why didn't any of you tell me he has a boyfriend?" Hyunjin asked looking at the glass in his hands.

"We knew you didn't get along with Felix and honestly, speaking for me, I thought he told you," Chan said. And it was like that. He was sure that Changbin had told Hyunjin that he was dating Felix and that he simply didn't want to talk about it with the others. That's why he never started the conversation.

"Well, clearly he didn't and getting to know it from someone else really hurt, you know. He deceived me. He kissed me, damn we were about to fuck and what I find out? He's dating. I'm a fool, an idiot" the taller one covered his face with his hands, sighing.

"No Hyunjin, it's not your fault. Changbin must take his responsibilities. However, they are no longer together," Chan said, opening his eyes and mouth to the taller. He couldn't believe his ears.

"What?"

"Yeah, Felix will go back in Australia shortly, but I think Changbin broke up with him for you." Hyunjin's heart began to beat faster. Had Changbin broken up with her boyfriend for him? Was it true or was Chan's trying to make him feel better?

"I-It doesn't matter. He hurt me, I don't know if I will be able to forgive him," the youngest added, puckering his lips in a pout, which made Chan laugh.

"We both know you will, but pout at him and ignore him for a few days, he deserves it" the older one stood up and ruffled Hyunjin's hair, making him whine.

"I'll leave some clothes in the bathroom," he continued, then left the room. Hyunjin sighed and couldn't help smiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we are again. I hope you liked it, even tho for me, again, it's nothing special :(  
> I wanted to say, after few times that I forgot about it, that for the school system I'm using the Italian one (cause yes, if you were wondering what is my mother tongue, its Italian woo), which is obviously different from the Korean one. It was too late when I realised I could have used the Korean system, but who cares right?  
> Remember to leave lots of comments and kudos, I stalk you :3


	10. 10.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything seems to be perfect, maybe way too perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't hate me please

A few days passed since that day, and as Chan had told him, Hyunjin always showed Changbin his pout. The older one tried to approach and talk to the taller one, but Hyunjin walked away or pretended not to hear him. Changbin, however, did not give up and always tried to make him laugh, sometimes succeeding. That made him realize that Hyunjin wasn't all that angry at him. It meant there was a possibility of being forgiven. He wanted to hug and kiss the taller one again. He needed it. Finally, they could be together and love each other openly. Hyunjin was a little amused by that situation. He liked how Changbin tried to get his attention in the most bizarre ways. It was cute, in his opinion. He had forgiven him everything, he was no longer angry, but he wanted to feel desired.

That Wednesday the boys were all at the park near the school, but Hyunjin was missing, as always. Changbin did not stop moving his gaze from his friends to the park entrance and vice versa. He hoped he could finally talk to the taller one, but obviously, he was late. For the umpteenth time, Changbin snorted, catching the Jeongin's attention, who was sitting next to him, but Chan is on his legs.

"Hyung you know him, he will arrive sooner or later" Jeongin chuckled resting his hand on the shoulder of Changbin, who sighed once again. Felix watched Changbin out of the corner of his eye and played with the edge of his sweatshirt. He missed him. He missed being in his arms, his kisses, the long talks and cuddles. But Felix could not do anything anymore. He had no right over Changbin, no more. Changbin, for his part, still felt guilty for what had happened, even if the two had remained on good terms. Felix didn't need a grudge for the other, and Changbin had no reason to be angry at Felix. The situation was a bit odd, and to avoid making others feel uncomfortable, both had preferred to stay away. It wasn't like they stopped talking, but obviously, it wasn't like before.

"I need to talk to him," Changbin whispered, running a hand through his hair.

They stayed there talking for a few minutes, but Hyunji was nowhere to been seen. For all the time, Changbin had remained silent, very unusual for the boy. That behaviour had not passed unnoticed to his friends, but they decided not to do anything. Five minutes before the bell could ring, the eight boys headed to school. As soon as they arrived, Changbin noticed a tall, skinny figure running towards the entrance of the building; Once Changbin saw him, he smiled. Involuntarily, Changbin's arm lifted and started to move, trying to catch Hyunjin's attention. At that moment the taller looked up and noticed Changbin looking in his direction. Hyunjin smiled and rolled his eyes, walking towards his group.

"You're here, Changbin-hyung was about to pass out," Seungmin said as soon as Hyunjin was close enough to hear him.

"Shut up, Min" Changbin whined, causing everyone's laughter. Hyunjin's smile widened and wrapped his arm around Changbin's shoulders, bringing him closer. The older one looked at him confused, but said nothing, on the contrary, he wrapped his arm around his waist and squeezed it lightly, making Hyunjin chuckle. The two looked at each other for a few seconds before being interrupted by Jisung.

"Ew, my poor innocent eyes," the boy exclaimed, covering his eyes with his right hand. Hyunjin and Changbin rolled their eyes, ignoring that comment. At that moment, the bell rang, and the boys started to move towards their classes. Changbin looked at Chan, who winked at him and smiled, then entered inside the building too. The two boys were alone.

"I need to talk to you. What about skipping the first hour?" Changbin asked, his arm still wrapped around the taller waist. Hyunjin nodded quickly, without thinking twice. He needed to talk to him too. He couldn't wait any longer; especially because Chan's words kept running around his head. At that point, the older one's arm moved away from the taller's waist to take his hand, and squeeze it gently in his. The two boys walked towards the back of the school, where they knew that nobody could see them, and went to sit under a tree, next to each other. Hyunjin's head rested on Changbin's shoulder, their hands still joined.

"I'm sorry for what happened with Felix," he began to speak, looking straight ahead. That was the first time the older one had apologized for what had happened, and Hyunjin was surprised. He raised his head, looking confused at Changbin. The older one, however, still had his gaze settled on something vague.

"I should have told you this from the beginning, but I was scared. As soon as Jeongin told us the truth I panicked. Then the kiss happened, and I didn't know what to do. You seemed so happy, and I couldn't stand the idea of making you suffer, even if by doing this I made you suffer, even more," Changbin continued, the grip on Hyunjin's hand tightened more and more as if he was afraid that the other would get up and walk away. Hyunjin still had his gaze on Changbin and felt a lump in his stomach at that words. He was about to talk, but Changbin spoke again.

"I feel horrible for what I did. Seeing you hurt because of me kills me, I don't want this. I want to make you happy, always, every day of my life. I love to see your beautiful smile every day and hear your cute laugh" Changbin turned his head, meeting Hyunjin's eyes, which had become shiny at those words. The mouth of the taller one opened and closed a few times in search of the proper words to say, but nothing came out. Changbin smiled slightly and raised his left hand, placing it on Hyunjin's cheek, stroking it with his thumb. The younger one closed his eyes and smiled, leaning into that little touch. Changbin took a deep breath as he traced Hyunjin's lower lip with his thumb, which made his eyes open.

"I love you," the older one said at some point. At those words, Hyunjin's eyes widened. His heart began to beat uncontrollably, so much that he was scared it could come out of his chest.

"I regret every day for not telling you earlier. That day I was ready to confess my feelings. I regret having waited so lo-" Hyunjin did not let him finish that quickly approached him, and pressed his lips against Changbin's. At first, Changbin was surprised, but then he closed his eyes and returned that little kiss.

"You're an idiot," the taller one whispered, against the older boy's lips, chuckling.

"Everyone in the group knew that I was in love with you, you were the only one who didn't notice it," Hyunjin said, opening his eyes and moving away from the older one.

"Really?" Changbin asked, surprised. He couldn't believe it. He never thought that Hyunjin could feel the same for him. Hyunjin nodded smiling, and at that point, Changbin kissed him once again, but this time going beyond the simple kiss. The kiss was slow, nothing rushed like their first kiss, as if they both wanted to enjoy every second. Changbin's hands rested on Hyunjin's cheeks, while Hyunjin's hands pressed against the ground, on either side of Changbin, as if supporting himself. Changbin pushed towards Hyunjin, nibbling his lower lip and making him hum softly.

"Did you break up with Felix for me?" Hyunjin whispered, slightly moving away from Changbin. The older one looked at him for a few moments before nodding.

"I couldn't keep pretending and lying to myself. I can't say I haven't felt anything for Lix, but what I felt and feel for you is bigger, stronger," Changbin said, stroking Hyunjin's cheeks. Hyunjin smiled at those words. He had finally opened his heart to the boy of his dreams. He still couldn't believe it, though. It all seemed too good to be true. He was scared that was all a dream and that soon he would wake up, finding himself alone in bed, back in America. He shook his head to push those thoughts away and focused on the boy in front of him.

"So, Hwang Hyunjin, would you do me the honour of being my boyfriend?" Changbin asked. Finally, that moment had arrived. The moment both of them had been waiting for too long. Changbin's hands went down along the taller's one arms, up to his hands, and squeezed them lightly, then intertwining their fingers.

"Of course I will, Seo Changbin," the younger one replied, smiling widely. Then Changbin leaned forward and pressed his lips against Hyunjin's for the third time.

"I've always been waiting for this moment," Changbin said when they parted. Hyunjin giggled, sitting on Changbin's lap, who wrapped his arms around Hyunjin's waist.

"If we had been braver, maybe all of this would have happened before. But it's okay hyung, now that we're together I won't leave you, never again" Hyunjin looked Changbin in the eyes as he spoke, with all the love he felt for the boy. The two stayed in that position until the sound of the beginning of the second hour. For the whole time, they whispered to each other all those unsaid things. Occasionally, they exchanged a few quick kisses, and sometimes the kiss deepened. In those moments, Changbin tried to hold back, but it was impossible when Hyunjin looked at him with those swollen eyes and plump lips. Those lips that were like a weak spot for the older one, that maybe were the reason why Changbin had fallen in love with the taller one.

The two got up and, after cleaning their jeans, they took each other by the hand, walking towards the entrance of the school. Hyunjin was complaining about how unfair it was that they were in two different classes and Changbin laughed, occasionally stopping to admire his boyfriend's pouty lips. His boyfriend. It was weird to call the younger one that way, but at the same time, he was happy that Hyunjin was finally his, for real that time, it wasn't just his fantasy.

"And do you know what's even more unfair?" Hyunjin's voice awakened him from his thoughts. The older one looked at the taller one and smiled sweetly. That boy was fucking his brain up.

"What Jinnie?" Changbin asked, and Hyunjin stopped walking, turning to look at him.

"That this is your last year and I'll have to be here all alone," the taller whined, crossing his arms over his chest and puckering his lips in a pout, adorable according to Changbin.

"But you won't be alone; you will be with Innie, Han and Min,"

"How I will bear with Jisung, you know how he is when Minho-hyung is not there. I am scared" those words made Changbin laugh. After all, the black-haired boy was right. Jisung knew how to be unbearable, and only Minho was able to make him calm down or stop.

"I feel offended Hwang" Hyunjin jumped at his voice. He turned quickly, finding Jisung a few centimetres away from him. Changbin laughed.

"You know I adore you," Hyunjin said, placing a hand on the shorter boy's shoulder, making him roll his eyes. At that moment, the rest of the boys also arrived. As soon as Changbin saw Felix, however, he quickly moved his hand away from Hyunjin's, making him sulk once again. He got it though, and perhaps he felt sorry for the red-haired boy. He couldn't even blame him if Felix hated him, but he still didn't like him. Not that he hated him, but he didn't have a reason to like him either. That's why he preferred to ignore him.

The boys set off for their classes, deciding to meet at aJeongin's place after classes, to give Felix one last goodbye. He would leave the next day. Everyone tried not to make the redheaded boy think about it. They had tried to make those days memorable, and they had succeeded. They had taken lots of photos, recorded whatever they had done, all to try not to make Felix miss them, even if it was difficult. Felix would have missed everyone. He would have missed everything.

As soon as Hyunjin and Felix entered their class, everyone gathered around Felix, showering him with questions and telling him to come back soon. Everyone liked Felix; maybe he was the weird one. At that moment, he realized that he had no reason to be mad at the red-haired boy. Besides, he could not consider it as an "enemy".

The black-haired boy went to sit at his desk, putting his backpack on the ground. He was absorbed in his thoughts when Felix's voice awakened him.  
"Can we talk for a moment?" the latter asked, sitting down at his desk. Hyunjin looked at him for a few moments before nodding.

"I know you hate me for what happened with Changbin-hyung, but I just wanted to tell you that if he chose you, there must be a reason. I'm sure you will make him happy, he deserves it," Felix said, smiling slightly. Hyunjin looked at him a little confused and then nodded. He was surprised, to be honest. He never expected to hear those words come from the red-haired boy. In a way, he felt relieved. Maybe because finally there was nothing that could have ruined what was between him and Changbin. It was as if all the pieces of that puzzle were in place, and everything was perfect.

"No hard feelings?" Felix continued showing his hand. Hyunjin nodded hesitantly and shook his hand. Felix smiled and went back to talking to the other classmates, leaving Hyunjin absorbed in his thoughts, all focused on Changbin.

Classes passed quickly, and the boys soon found themselves on the way to Jeongin's house. Hyunjin and Changbin were holding hands, and they were the end of the line, to avoid Jisung and Seungmin's comments about being too cheesy. They were halfway there when Hyunjin's phone rang. As soon as the boy alto read the mother's name on the screen, decided to decline the call. Another call came and another when Hyunjin refused to answer. He had not yet returned home and refused to do so for now. He hadn't even talked to his parents, yet and that was the first time they had called him.

"Maybe it's important," Changbin said worriedly. The whole story between Hyunjin and his parents made him worry and not a little. He knew they were difficult and very strict parents with the black-haired boy, but on the other hand, they were always his parents after all, and he could not ignore them forever.

"Of course not," replied the taller one rolling my eyes. Changbin sighed, and at that moment, the woman called again. In a quick move, the older one took the phone from Hyunjin's hand before he could decline the call, and answered bringing the phone to the ear of the tallest. Hyunjin glared at him, but the other didn't seem to care, smiling smugly.

"Oh honey, where are you?" the woman asked in a voice way too cheerful for Hyunjin's tastes.

"What do you want? Now you remember you have a son?" the taller one said arching an eyebrow. Jeongin, who was ahead of them, arm in arm with Chan, turned around, making his boyfriend turn around too. He looked confusedly at Changbin and then at Hyunjin, who had stopped to talk at the phone a few meters behind.

"Go, we will meet you there," Changbin said, and Chan nodded.

"What's going on, hyung?" the younger one asked, frowning.

"I don't know, but don't worry. We'll meet you there, now go," Changbin said before turning to walk towards Hyunjin.

"No mom, I don't care. I won't come back home, not even for five minutes," the taller one snapped. As soon as Changbin was beside him, he squeezed his free hand, trying to calm him down. Hyunjin looked at him in the eyes and smiled, but that smile was replaced with an annoyed expression.

"Fine, I'm coming," Hyunjin sighed, and then ended the call.

"Is everything okay?" Changbin spoke after a few moments, giving Hyunjin time to calm down.

"I have to go, apparently they have something really important to tell me," Hyunjin replied sighing, running a free hand through his hair. Changbin nodded, interlacing his fingers with Hyunjin's.

"Do you want me to come with you?" the older one asked, and Hyunjin nodded.

"Everything will be okay. If things get complicated we will leave, okay?" Hyunjin nodded once again, and the two walked towards Hyunjin's house. For the whole walk, the two stayed silent, but time to time Changbin squeezed Hyunjin's hand, trying to reassure him.

"Now you can go Binnie," the black-haired boy said as soon as they arrived.

"Are you sure, Jinnie?" Changbin asked, biting my lower lip. He wanted to stay with him; he knew he needed it. He knew that Hyunjin needed him; he wanted to be there; he didn't want to leave him alone, especially in a so hard moment for the taller one.

"They wouldn't hesitate to call you names. I'm fine, don't worry. Go now. I'll be there soon" the taller smiled sweetly, before lowering himself a bit and leaving a small kiss on Changbin's the lips, who still looked at him frowning.

As soon as Hyunjin entered the house, Changbin sighed and turned, then started walking towards Jeongin's house. He was worried. He knew that Hyunjin did not know how to control himself. Above all, he did not want the taller one to be crying because of his parents once again. He felt helpless.

"Oh honey, you're finally here," his mother exclaimed as soon as Hyunjin stepped into the living room.

"Hurry up, I'm busy," Hyunjin said, going to sit on the couch. His mother sighed slightly and sat next to her son. Hyunjin slipped on the couch, trying to get away from the woman.

"You know you can come back whenever you want," the woman said trying to place a hand on Hyunjin's knee, but once again he moved away.

"But I don't want to," the black-haired boy replied, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at his mother straight in the eye.

"Where will you stay then? Where have you been until today?" the woman asked. Hyunjin could swear she looked really worried about him, but he knew it was all appearance. She tried to be a good mother, but in Hyunjin's opinion, it was a real failure. He had always been convinced that she did know how to be a mother. It was because she had become a mom at a young age, and at the time she was unable to take care of herself, let alone of a son.

"It's none of your business. If you're trying to convince me to come back, I'm leaving," Hyunjin said, standing up, but his mother widened her eyes and pulled him onto the sofa, grabbing him for the wrist.

"No! Your father and I wanted to give you great news," she smiled, turning to look at her husband, who had stayed silent all the time observing Hyunjin.

"Tomorrow evening you will go to dinner with Lee's daughter," the man spoke with all the tranquillity he could have in his body.

"What? No way"

"But it's an excellent opportunity to unify our families," the mother added, smiling widely. Hyunjin looked at her raising an eyebrow.

"It's all decided anyway, you have no choice. As soon as the school is over, you and Jiyeon will get married" at those words Hyunjin held his breath. It couldn't be true. It had to be a joke. Not even twenty minutes earlier, he thought that everything was perfect with Changbin, and at the moment it was falling apart. He could not believe it. Finally, after so many years, he was happy; he couldn't let his parents ruin everything once again.

"W-what? What- What does that mean?" the black-haired boy stuttered.

"You will love her. She is such a polite and beautiful girl," the mother said, nodding vigorously. Hyunjin, however, did not listen to her. He closed his eyes for a few moments, trying to control his breathing, which had suddenly become laboured.

"You can't force me to get married," the black-haired boy said in a low tone of voice. His hands began to shake, and he felt suffocated. He was sure he was going to have a panic attack. He had to get out of there, as soon as possible.

"Of course we can. That's how it will go if you want to keep seeing your friends," the father was looking at him, but he wasn't moving a muscle to help him. The mother, however, seemed to frown and want to help Hyunjin to calm down but did nothing.

"Now go to your room. You will go out only for school until your engagement with Jiyeon is official" the man continued standing up and walking towards the stairs stopping at the base of these.

"I won't stay in this house for another second," Hyunjin shook his head, getting to his feet and walking towards the front door.

"What about that Changbin. You still want to see him, right?" those words made him stop on the spot. Changbin. How would he tell him about all of that?

"In your room Hyunjin, I will not repeat myself once again," the father added resolutely, pointing to the stairs. Hyunjin sighed, his hands clenched in two fists as small tears began to roll down his cheeks.

"Selfish assholes," Hyunjin said, in a tone that was far too calm for the state he was in. After those words, he went upstairs, then closed himself in his room, falling against the door.

He wanted with all his heart that it was just a nightmare.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know im pretty late, but I've been pretty busy these days, especially with the comeback. I've been streaming and voting most of the time. About this, please make sure to vote and stream the mv and performances, its really important. Feel free to ask anything about it, I will gladly help you  
> About the story, next chapter will be the last one. I know it was unexpected, probably not, but I really thing this story has to come to an end. I promise I'll try my best to update the new chapter as soon as possible.  
> Hope you liked it, sorry for any mistake.  
> please leave lots of kudos and comments, I stalk you :3


	11. chapter 11 (part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> idk what to say, pls enjoy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter makes me so nervous, pls don't kill me.  
> I ask you to accept my apology if there's any mistake

Hyunjin sighed for the umpteenth time as his hands touched the fabric of those suits. He didn't want to be there he wanted to be everywhere, but not there. He closed his eyes for a few moments his head had started to hurt from the first moment he had set foot there. Luckily Jeongin and Chan were with him, making the situation lighter. Three months were left, before school and his family was busy preparing for that arranged marriage. No matter how many times he rebelled, his parents would never change their minds. At some point Hyunjin had stopped trying, it was useless. He had accepted the fact that he could not escape from this situation. His parents did not leave him alone for a moment, especially since he had tried to run away from home, three times, failing. It was way too much for him. He couldn't bear it all alone, so he decided to tell Jeongin everything, and inevitably Chan also found out. Since then, the three had tried to come up with something to get Hyunjin out of that situation, but it was all in vain.

"Hyung, how about this?" Jeongin's voice awakened him from his thoughts. Hyunjin turned to him and analyzed the suit in his hands. It wasn't bad, not that he cared too much.

"Okay, I'll try it, then we'll go," one taller one sighed. Hyunjin grabbed the hanger and walked to the dressing room. As soon as he closed the door, he leaned against it and covered his face with his hands. He couldn't understand why all of that was happening to him. He started to think that he had done something horrible in his previous life, to deserve that.

"Yes Bin, he's here with me, don't worry" after hearing that name, Hyunjin straightened up and uncovered his face. He slipped his phone out of his pocket and saw three missed calls from Changbin and several messages.

"Damn" he whispered, putting the phone back in his pocket. With that damned headache, he put it on silent, because every slightest noise felt like someone was hitting his head with something.

"Okay, I'll tell him," he heard Chan talk again. After a few seconds, someone knocked on the door. The black-haired boy hurried to open the door, finding Chan in front of him.

"Binnie asked me to remind you that he's waiting for you at his place," Chan said, smiling slightly. Hyunjin looked at him for a few moments before nodding. Then he looked over the suit and felt a lump in his throat.

"We'll wait for you there" and after that Chan closed the dressing room door, leaving the taller one to change. Hyunjin took some time to change. He did everything very slowly as if he was afraid. He was scared to go to Changbin's house. Hyunjin sighed and walked out of the dressing room towards where Jeongin and Chan were sitting.

"Wow hyung, it looks great on you," said the younger looking at him with his mouth open. Hyunjin then turned to the mirror and looked at himself. His eyes searched every single inch of his body. It was certainly not the way he would have expected the choice of his suit. He wasn't even sure if he ever wanted to get married. He was still too young, too immature to think of taking such a big step. But if he thought about it a little, maybe he would. He would have done it for Changbin, maybe. He was sure the older was his life; he was sure he wanted to spend the rest of his life with him.

He closed his eyes for a few seconds, trying to hold back the tears.

"You have to tell him" again, Chan's voice made him open his eyes. They were glassy, ready to shed millions and millions of tears at any moment.

"You can't wait any longer. This thing is too big. I don't understand why you haven't told him yet" the older one continued shaking his head. Once again, they were having that conversation. He was, fed up. Chan wouldn't stop telling him those words, but Hyunjin didn't know what to do. He didn't know how to tell Changbin he had to get married. Finally, they were happy together. He couldn't ruin everything; he couldn't.

"He will hate me," the taller whispered, lowering his head. That thought had been haunting him since the first day. He couldn't stand the idea that Changbin could hate him.

"He won't, he's crazy about you Jinnie; he loves you. He could never hate you," Chan said, shaking his head.

"Do it today, or it will be too late," the older one added, looking into the taller one's eyes. Hyunjin nodded; the older one was right. He could no longer hide the truth. In those months it had been hard for him since Hyunjin spent most of his days with Changbin. But there were days in which he disappeared for the whole day, and none of his friends knew where he was. It happened when his family and Jiyeon's decided to spend the day together, wherever they wanted, even in another city.

To Changbin, he said that his parents prohibited him from going out every day, and he believed it. He knew how the parents of the taller one were like, and he wasn't surprised, so he didn't ask many questions.

Hyunjin ran a hand through his hair, then headed to the dressing room, changing back into his clothes. He hurried to pay, and in five minutes, the three boys found themselves on the way to Changbin's home. The walk was silent, mainly because Chan and Jeongin did not stop whispering things to each other. Hyunjin envied them. But not in a bad way. He was happy for them, he really was. But sometimes he wished it had been so simple for him and Changbin too. From what Jeongin had told him, he and Chan had gotten together a few months after he left. Chan had helped the younger one to move on. He had always been with him, and inevitably they had fallen in love and never left, from the first moment. There had been ups and downs; but nothing too serious, nothing that had damaged their story. Both of their parents had accepted the thing; that little detail that had always haunted Hyunjin, his parents' acceptance.

As soon as they arrived in front of Changbin's house, Hyunjin sighed and hesitated before ringing the bell.

"Give me the bag, I'll take it to your place later," Chan said, taking the bag from Hyunjin's hands, and at that moment the door opened, revealing the boy with a wide smile. As soon as Hyunjin saw him, he felt like all his worries had disappeared. Then even the taller one smiled and ran to Changbin, throwing himself into his arms. The older one chuckled and wrapped his arms around Hyunjin's body, hugging him tightly. Chan and jeongin smiled at that scene before waving their hands in the air and leaving.

Changbin tried to break the contact, but the taller one whined and pushed Changbin against him.  
"A little more," Hyunjin whispered, hiding his head into Changbin's neck.

"Jinnie, is there something wrong?" the older one asked in a whisper, starting to caress Hyunjin's back.

"Let's go inside first," Hyunjin whispered, moving slightly away from Changbin, who nodded, holding the younger's hand. They entered the house, and Hyunjin was happy to discover that his boyfriend's parents were not at home. They walked upstairs, to Changbin's room, who quickly closed the door.

Hyunjin was already sitting on the bed, fiddling with his fingers. Changbin looked at him, worried. He had noticed an odd change in his boyfriend's behaviour. It was probably his parents' fault, and he didn't want to put even more pressure on the younger one.  
He wanted to protect him and keep him safe.

Changbin laid his hands on Hyunjin's and squeezed them lightly, trying to calm the taller one down. Hyunjin sighed and raised his head, looking at Changbin. The two looked at each other for a few moments, before the black-haired boy opened his mouth, but no sound came out. It was like he had words stuck in his throat. A sudden sense of nausea made his way in him, and he felt a lump in his throat. 

He had to tell him, that was the right time. Chan was right, he couldn't wait any longer, or it would have been worse. Hyunjin gathered all his courage and squeezed his boyfriend's hands.

"I-I have to tell you something," the taller one started to speak. He was scared. He didn't want to lose him; he couldn't. Changbin was his rock, the only one who could make him feel good, the only one who could make him happy. The older one was his whole world. Changbin nodded but decided not to talk. He wanted to leave the younger boy all the time he needed. He was afraid he would shut himself up if he said too much, so Changbin decided to stay silent.

The older one frowned when he noticed that Hyunjin had started to cry. Quickly he put his hands on the younger boy's cheeks.  
"Jinnie, why are you crying?" Changbin asked worriedly. Hyunjin looked at him confused, but then rubbed his right eye with his hand and realized that it was wet. He hadn't even noticed that he had started to cry. That situation was exhausting him. He had lost all his strength.

"I'm so sorry Binnie, I'm sorry," Hyunjin whispered, shaking his head. At that moment, tears began to roll down his cheeks, colliding against Changbin's hands.

"Whatever you did, it doesn't matter. I don't care, okay?" he tried to reassure the taller one. He wiped away his tears with his thumbs, in a futile attempt to remove all traces of tears from the face of the younger one.

"No, you don't understand." Hyunjin shook his head and looked down.

"Then explain it to me, make me understand. I can't help you if don't tell me "Changbin moved his hands on Hyunjin's arms, squeezing them lightly.

"My parents ... they-" the younger one started to talk but stopped when a sob escaped from his mouth.

"What did they do? Did they hurt you?" the older one asked worriedly. Panic was making his way inside of him when all those times that Hyunjin refused to take off his shirt with Changbin started to make sense. But Hyunjin shook his head, and suddenly nothing made sense. He was already imagining his boyfriend's delicate skin marked.

"They are forcing me to- get married," Hyunjin said quickly and Changbin hoped, prayed that he had heard wrongly or that it was all a joke.

"What?" the older one asked in a whisper. His hands moved away from the younger boy's arms, running them through his hair.

"I-I'm so sorry" the taller one repeated, covering his face with his hands. He felt disgusting, he felt that he had broken everything he and Changbin had built in those months.

"They can't do it," the older one said, standing up. He could not believe it, or rather he believed it. Most families in Korea did it. They arranged weddings for business. He felt really lucky. His parents never put pressure on him, they supported him when he told them he was gay, and they were happy that he fell in love with Hyunjin. For them, the taller one was like a second son, and if the black-haired boy made their son happy, then they were happy too.

"They forced me, threatened to send me back to America and if it happened we would never see each other again and I can't, I can't lose you, not again." Hyunjin tried to talk through the sobs. His body was shaking and his throat was burning.

"It was the only way to stay with you," he added, lifting his head to look at Changbin. The latter was still standing, right hand in his hair and left against the wall.

"When will it happen?" the older one asked, closing his eyes for a few moments.

"Soon after school is over," Hyunjin replied in a whisper. His hands were resting on his thighs, and he was sweating cold.

"When did they tell you?" Changbin asked again, remaining in that position. He was panicking but was trying hard to stay calm for Hyunjin. He knew that Hyunjin needed him and had to stay strong. He could not afford to collapse. He was ill at seeing his boyfriend in that state and he wanted, even more, to take him away from his parents. He just had to find a way.

"Hyunjin, when" he repeated the question when the younger one didn't answer.

"T-the day before Felix left," Hyunjin whispered, closing his eyes. At those words, Changbin held his breath. He started to feel guilty for not insisting and deepening the topic when he realized that something was going wrong.

"Why didn't you tell me right away?" Changbin asked in a whisper. He was not angry, he was sad, and he felt helpless. He wanted to help the boy in front of him; he had to do it, at all costs.

"I was afraid. I was afraid you would have left me or- I don't know. I was panicking, and every time I tried to tell you, you reminded me how much you loved me and how happy I made you," Hyunjin whispered bursting into tears. Changbin approached him quickly and wrapped his arms around him, hugging him tightly. He started to caress his back, trying to calm him down, and he succeeded.

"And then I started thinking about how happy I was to have you in my life and I couldn't, I'm so sorry Binnie," the taller continues, hiding his head in Changbin's neck. His hands clenched in two fists the shirt of the older one.

"We will find a solution, together," Changbin whispered, squeezing the younger one. He started to leave a few kisses on his head; he wanted to comfort him.

"They control me; I feel their eyes on me every hour, every day. It's a nightmare," the taller one replied after a few seconds, in a low tone of voice, which even at that closeness, it was almost impossible for Changbin to understand.

"It will be all right, I promise. I won't let them take you away from me." Changbin sat Hyunjin on his legs, holding him tightly against his chest. The taller one sniffled and nodded, no longer having the strength to talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we are so close to end, Im feeling emotional  
> ANYway, I really hope you liked this first part of out last chapter. Don't worry I will publish part 2 soon, so you dont have to wait too long.  
> Leaves lots of comments and kudos, im stalking you :3


	12. chapter 11 (part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the end, things have turned in the best way for Hyunjin and Changbin, wo will start a new chapter of their lives, together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here we are with the last part of our journey. please read the note at the end.  
> I apologize if there's any mistake, soon I will correct every chapter.

Hyunjin drank all the liquid of the glass. He had pleaded his mother to give him something to calm his anxiety, and in the end, the woman had given up. For that day, they had decided to establish a small truce. No fights, yells or whatever. Only the facade of the perfect family. The one that his parents had always tried to maintain, at the expense of their only child's happiness. From the first moment he opened his eyes, Hyunjin hoped that day would end as quickly as possible, he was tired of it already.

In one way or another those three months had passed quickly, too quickly for Hyunjin's taste, who wanted that day never to come. Yet here he is, in his room to finish getting ready. He looked in the mirror and thought that the suit was a waste for that day; he had wasted thousands of won into something he would have thrown away as soon as he had the chance. His friends kept texting and calling him, but he ignored them or at least tried to do it. Occasionally his eyes fell on the phone screen and read a few messages. Lots of them said it would be all right, some to hold on, some not to screw up, or the situation could get worse because Hyunjin didn't stop thinking about not showing up in the church, to run away. It was a good idea for the taller one, but then he thought his friends were right.

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed before leaving his room.  
"You're finally here, we're late," his mother exclaimed, grabbing him by the wrist and dragging him out of the house. He had stopped fighting against his parents, so he let them talk and do whatever they wanted; he didn't care.

"Okay, I got it. Don't pull me." Hyunjin snorted, rolling his eyes.

"In the car, we won't be late because of you," his dad said, getting into the car and slamming the door. Hia mother sighed and got into the car as well, quickly fastening her belt. Hyunjin closed his eyes for a few moments to calm down. He was trying to hold back, but it was hard.

"We said no arguments today, please," his mother said, placing a hand on her husband's arm. At that moment, Hyunjin got into the car, and his father started driving soon after.

"We all are stressed, let's try to calm down and enjoy this day, okay?" the woman added, looking first at her husband and then at her son.

"Enjoy what exactly? Enjoy the day that will ruin my life? Should I thank you at some point?" Hyunjin snapped acidly. He was trying to hold back because he knew that if they said anything else, he would explode.

"Hyunjin, stop it, it's for our family's sake," the father said, glancing at Hyunjin from the mirror.

"Ah, and I'm not part of the family? What about my happiness?" the black-haired boy crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow. All that was going on was not for his sake. The only person who made him feel happy was not with him, and he didn't know if he would ever see him again after that day.

"You are still too young, you will understand over the years that we have also done it for your good," the mother replied, turning around.

Hyunjin shook his head and decided not to answer, it was useless to talk to them, he knew it, but he was so tired of all that.

He wanted Changbin to be there with him. He needed his hug; he needed the older one to hold his hands and tell him that everything would be all right. They had met the night before. Changbin had secretly sneaked in Hyunjin's room, through the window, and they had lain down on the younger's bed. Changbin had held him in his arms all night. He had stroked his hair and sung his favourite song. Hyunjin then cried, and the older one let him let off steam. So many "I love you" have been whispered, the older one had promised him that he would solve everything, told him that he had found a way and that he would have to wait a little longer. Hyunjin didn't understand what he was referring to, but he had trusted him. He would always trust the older, it was his only certainty.

The next morning, when Changbin left, he left a note on Hyunjin's bedside table, where he said he loved him and that everything would be okay. Hyunjin was happy that Changbin hadn't abandoned him in that situation. They were still together; they hadn't broken up; they had decided that this would not be an obstacle for them. They loved each other and nothing and nobody would separate them. Hyunjin still didn't know what Changbin's plan was, but he hoped it would work.

Before he realised it, they had arrived in front of the church. Hyunjin looked at it for a few moments before getting out the car. _This is the time to run away,_ he thought. But then he shook his head and entered the building. He had to wait for Changbin.

Hyunjin walked down the aisle straight to the altar. He felt all the eyes of those present focused on him and even a few comments on his appearance. "He's so handsome" "Jiyeon chose well" those were the comments that had caught his attention. He wanted to yell, scream that no, Jiyeon hadn't chosen, that he hadn't chosen, but he couldn't. He started to remember that time when he and Jiyeon had confessed that they didn't want that wedding. She said she already had a boyfriend and she loved him very much, but her parents didn't accept him. He had never expected the girl to be so similar to him, and from that day on, they became friends. Hyunjin had no problem confessing his sexual orientation and showed a picture of him and Changbin to Jiyeon. She said they were cute together and that Changbin was handsome. Hyunjin laughed at those words, and when he told the older one, the latter had started to strut, a bit like Jisung did every day.

He was too lost in his thoughts, that he didn't notice that the music had started echoing. He blinked a few times before turning around, to look at Jiyeon. He could not deny that she was a beautiful girl and that the dress looked good on her, but suddenly he felt guilty. Probably the girl wanted to marry her real boyfriend, not him, not a weird boy with tons of problems. He was breaking her biggest dream. In a few seconds, the girl was beside him, and the music stopped. The two looked at each other in the eyes, and it was as if they were apologizing like it was their fault. Slowly Hyunjin held her hand and squeezed it lightly as if he was trying to give her some strength and courage.

Then the ceremony began, and Hyunjin felt a knot in his stomach, and a sense of anxiety pervades his body. Occasionally he glanced at the watch around his wrist, realizing that everything was coming to an end, but Changbin was nowhere in sight. He began to believe that the older had abandoned him and panic added to his anxiety. His hands were sweaty, and he had to pull it away from Jiyeon's, rubbing it on his pants. _Where is he?_ He kept wondering. _Changbin don't leave me, please,_ he could feel the tears sting his eyes, but he couldn't cry.

Hyunjin wasn't paying attention to anything that was going on around him. He only thought of Changbin; he only thought of going away.

As they were about to exchange the rings, the church door swung open, catching everyone's attention. Hyunjin turned quickly, and a wide smile appeared on his face.

"What is going on?" Hyunjin heard his mother exclaim. Everyone started whispering, wondering who that boy was and why he was there. Changbin took a few steps, trying to catch his breath, he had run.

"Hyunjin, don't you dare" this time it was his father who talked, approaching his son and grabbing him by the arm. The black-haired boy looked at him, the smile still on his lips. He was finally free.

"Go fuck yourself," the boy said, escaping his grip. Hyunjin turned to Jiyeon, who smiled and nodded, as if to tell him to go, to live. He hugged her and kissed her on the forehead.

"Let's stay in touch," the taller whispered before moving away from the hug. Hyunjin turned to Changbin and ran towards him, throwing himself into his arms.

"I was scared you wouldn't come," the black-haired boy whispered. Changbin moved away, placing his hands on Hyunjin's cheeks, caressing them with his thumbs.

"Sorry if I'm late," Changbin said, smiling widely. He was so happy to have the taller in his arms. The two looked at each other again. They felt like they were the only one, not caring about thousands of eyes looking at them.

"Now let's get out of here," Changbin said, taking Hyunjin's hand. The taller looked at him in confusion but didn't ask. He would be going anywhere with Changbin. Before they could leave, though, Hyunjin turned to his parents and took a deep breath.

"Anyway just so you know, this boy right here, is my boyfriend, and he fucks me every night. Yes, dad, I'm gay. I like boys if it's too difficult for you to understand," the taller boy said shrugging. His parents looked at him, like everyone else. Then Hyunjin raised both his hands and showed his middle fingers. He left everyone in shock. His mother had to sit down, suddenly feeling her legs shaking. His dad was fuming and hurried towards his sone.

"Fuck, he's coming" Changbin laughed, before holding the taller's hand and taking him out. For the last time, Hyunjin turned around and waved at his dad, smiling. As soon as the two were out, laughing out loud, the older one led them to a car.

"Hurry, get in the car" the older one chuckled, opening the door. He was hesitating.

"Where are we going?" the younger one asked, sitting in the car, on the back seats. Changbin sat beside him and, with a whisper, he told the taxi driver their destination.

"You'll find out soon," the older one replied, placing his hand on Hyunjin's thigh and squeezing it lightly. The younger nodded and rested his head on Changbin's shoulder, who started stroking his hair. Changbin was still worried, and he knew he couldn't calm down until they got to their destination, away from everything and everyone. Maybe it was crazy or not, but he didn't care. The only thing he wanted was to see his boyfriend happy, nothing more and if they had stayed there, he would never have been, neither of them.

After about half an hour, they arrived at their destination, and Hyunjin couldn't help but widen his eyes at the sight of the airport. He looked at Changbin even more confused than before, but the older one didn't answer. Instead, he got out of the car. Hyunjin followed him soon after. He watched him take two not too big suitcases out of the trunk.

"Will you tell me what we are doing here?" the taller boy asked, grabbing the black suitcase Changbin was giving him. The older then took some sheets out of his suitcase pocket, giving them to Hyunjin.

"Paris" Hyunjin read aloud, widening his eyes.

"I thought we both needed a new start, together," Changbin replied, holding the younger's hand. Hyunjin looked at him still in disbelief. It all seemed so surreal. His gaze fell again on the tickets and bit his lower lip. He never expected Changbin to organize something like that. It was crazy, but the idea excited him. Living with his boyfriend in one of the most beautiful cities he knew, seemed like a great idea. He needed it. He had to get away from all of that. The only thing he needed was right in front of him and nothing else.

"I know it's all sudden but-" Changbin started to talk, but Hyunjin interrupted him, placing his hand over the older's mouth.

"Like in France? Paris in the fucking France?" he asked, starting to chuckle. Changbin nodded and moved his hand away to talk.

"Exactly Jinnie, in the fucking France," the older laughed, grabbing the taller boy's hand and intertwining their fingers. The two looked at each other for a few moments before walking inside the airport. They walked towards the check-in, which fortunately didn't last long, and then they went to gate number thirteen. They had arrived an hour and a half early, so they took it easy.

As soon as they arrived at the gate, they went to sit on the first chairs they found. Hyunjin curled up on Changbin's side and closed his eyes.

"I was about to forget it, take this," the older one said after a few minutes of silence. The black-haired boy opened his eyes, finding a phone in front of him. He took it in his hands and tilted his head to one side.

"New life, new number. I saved those of the boys and Jiyeon, and I gave them ours. Turn off and remove the card from yours, then break it," Changbin explained. Soon, Hyunjin started thinking about his friends, and that he was going to miss them, a lot. He thought of Jeongin and the fact that once again they should separate. He would miss him like the air.

"And don't worry about your precious photos, I've saved them all" Changbin awakened him from his thoughts.

"You are amazing," Hyunjin chuckled, holding him in his arms.

"I love you, and I would do anything for you, anything. Even change my life," Changbin whispered, leaving a kiss on the younger's lips.

"I promised you I would take you away from them," he continued, leaning their foreheads together. Hyunjin nodded and smiled softly.

He was so grateful to have Changbin in his life. He was sure he didn't need anything else; he was sure that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with the older one. The two stayed in that position for a few moments until Changbin moved away and took his phone.

"I have to show you something," he smiled as he fiddled with the phone. Then he turned it and pressed on the screen playing a video. As soon as Hyunjin saw his friends, he covered his mouth with his hand, immediately feeling tears sting his eyes. For most of the time, the video was a mess. The boys did not stop screaming, laughing and fighting, making the taller boy chuckle. Then came the serious part of the video, where the boys told him to enjoy the new life with Changbin and leave everything behind. Jeongin and Jisung had a small pout because Changbin hadn't told them where they were going.

"They are so sweet. I miss them already" the taller admitted, looking at his boyfriend. Changbin smiled and held Hyunjin's hand in his.

"Me too. We'll tell them where we are as soon as the waters have calmed down," Changbin said, caressing the younger's hand with his thumb.

Hyunjin sighed softly and closed his eyes for a few moments. He was ready to start that new chapter of his life. He would have left his old life behind and never looked back. He had a new future waiting for him. And he didn't care about what would happen, as long as Changbin was by his side, everything would go in the right direction.

"I love you, Seo Changbin," Hyunjin said, looking in Changbin's eyes.

"I love you too, Hwang Hyunjin," the older one replied, before kissing the younger on the lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe we finally come to an end. I gotta say that I've never expected so many views or kudos or anything and all I can do is thank all of you. Im really happy you liked this little thing I wrote and im happy you liked it. I apologize for making you wait so long, but I hope its worth it.  
> I wanted to say that this won't be the first and last fan fiction, just wait and see. I have a lot of ideas, all of them written in my notes, mostly one shots, and ready to be shared with you, I hope you will like them. Many, if not all of them, will have Hyunjin and Changbin as main characters, because, as you know, Chongjin is my favorite otp and they deserve more attentions.  
> Leave lots of kudos and comments, Im stalking you :3  
> see you soon

**Author's Note:**

> And there it is, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. There will be more and more, actually I don’t know how many, but still. Hope you liked it~


End file.
